Bryan testified before Senate committee on territorial issues

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Feb. 26, 2019, during a hearing on the state of U.S. territories.

According to Government House, Bryan updated the committee on the U.S. Virgin Islands' recovery and rebuilding efforts following hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 and thanked Congress for its support.

He also raised concerns about federal support disparities affecting the territory, including Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements. Bryan asked Congress to extend by one year the disaster-related Medicaid relief approved in the Bipartisan Budget Act, including the local match waiver and the additional Medicaid allotment with full federal funding, through the end of fiscal year 2020.

In his testimony, Bryan said Medicare law as applied to the Virgin Islands was outdated and had contributed to reimbursement shortfalls that were harming the territory's publicly owned hospitals and government. He also called for other policy changes, including increased highway funding and tax policy changes related to the Jobs Act of 2004.

Government House said Bryan was scheduled to return to the territory on Feb. 27, 2019.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/governor-bryan-testifies-before-u-s-senate-committee-on-energy-and-natural-resources/