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WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR) secured Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s commitment to help strengthen cancer treatment and research in Arkansas as well as ensure rural communities maintain access to health care amid challenges with declining populations.
Boozman questioned Kennedy at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the department’s efforts to prioritize investment in prevention, screening and infrastructure, particularly in rural regions, to improve cancer outcomes.
“Early detection through screening of cancer is critical to improving outcomes and reducing long-term healthcare costs,” Boozman said. “National Cancer Institutes deliver cutting-edge cancer treatments to patients in communities across the United States and provide public education and outreach programs. Yet there are currently no NCI-Designated Cancer Centers in Arkansas, Mississippi, or Louisiana—states with some of the highest cancer mortality rates in the country.”
“I am aware of the application by the University of Arkansas [for Medical Sciences for] NCI designation, and I’m very anxious to help you with that,” Kennedy answered.
The senator, who also serves as Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, additionally raised his concerns about the struggles farmers – and the rural communities they reside in – have with health care access, including provider shortages and transportation barriers.
“Nearly half of Arkansas’s counties lost population between 2022 and 2023. Providers in rural communities struggle to keep the doors open, leading to gaps in care. How can we partner to develop sustainable health infrastructure that ensures that federal policies help attract and retain providers in health care deserts?” Boozman asked.
“I understand we’ve got to keep those institutions in those regions. They’re important economic drivers. And for people who need to visit an urgent care or an emergency room, they’re life-saving. I want to work with you to make sure that the 60 million Americans who live in rural areas, to keep them in those areas and healthy,” Kennedy responded.U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, highlighted important Natural State priorities including ensuring timely progress and completion of projects at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith and modernization and maintenance of Army Corps of Engineers recreation sites across Arkansas during a nominations hearing this week.
Boozman secured a commitment from Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works nominee Adam Telle to ensure the Little Rock District receives the Corps’ full support and resources for mission-critical projects at Ebbing in support of the F-35 Foreign Military Sales training mission.
The nominee reassured the senator he would fully follow congressional intent and work collaboratively with Boozman and his colleagues as a Corps of Engineers civilian leader. Telle further noted his desire to identify and implement creative solutions to enhance Corps-managed recreation sites to meet the needs of Arkansans.
The senator also questioned Sean McMaster, nominated to lead the Federal Highway Administration, on work zone safety issues. McMaster agreed on the need to study data and devote resources to address persistent challenges that endanger drivers and crews at infrastructure projects sites
U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, highlighted important Natural State issues while participating in a hearing on the nominations of Brian Nesvik to be Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and Jessica Kramer to be Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water of the Environmental Protection Agency. The senator elevated critical Arkansas priorities including wildlife management, wetland conservation and water infrastructure.
While addressing Nesvik, Boozman – a member of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission – noted that the population of ducks in Arkansas has remained stable due largely to duck hunters’ commitment to wetland and waterfowl conservation. He questioned Nesvik on his plans to maintain the Migratory Bird Program and efforts to support outdoor recreation such as hunting and fishing through the National Wildlife Refuge System.
Boozman also noted the water infrastructure challenges facing communities across Arkansas and beyond, and pressed Kramer to look for opportunities to cut red tape, promote flexibility and engage local and state officials with respect to modernizing and improving drinking water and irrigation systems.
U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR) joined U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin and several of his Senate colleagues in welcoming the announcement that the EPA will work with the United States Army Corps of Engineers to review the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS).
As Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee and a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Boozman understands the challenges Arkansas farmers, ranchers and landowners experience when it comes to WOTUS. For years, the regulation has created uncertainty and confusion over diverted surface water and wetlands, negatively affecting agriculturalists and their businesses through permitting delays and property value decline.
Our farmers and ranchers want to maintain a safe and clean environment because their livelihoods depend on it. Unfortunately, WOTUS has made it impossible to make conservation-focused investments. The senator looks forward to continuing efforts to implement a commonsense policy.
Chairman Boozman joined Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Katie Britt (R-AL), as well as Western Caucus Chairman Doug LaMalfa (R-CA-01), Representative Derrick Van Orden (R-WI-03), and Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall, for the announcement that the agency would work swiftly on a revised definition.
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Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) joined Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, other congressional leaders and members of the Cash family to unveil Arkansas's newest contribution to the National Statuary Hall Collection: a bronze sculpture of Johnny Cash. The musician, born in Kingsland, Arkansas and raised in Dyess, becomes the first recording artist to be featured in the U.S. Capitol.
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And watch the recap of the ceremony below celebrating the dedication of the statue by Little Rock artist Kevin Kresse.
U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR), a member of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee questioned Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown, Jr. in a hearing reviewing the president’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget request for the Department of Defense.