Sun Life U.S. Applauds Senate Committee Members For Bipartisan Agreement On Key Healthcare Workforce Legislation

Statement from Sun Life U.S. President Dan Fishbein on proposed legislation to expand access to primary care and address health workforce challenges

BOSTON, Sept. 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Dan Fishbein, M.D., President of Sun Life U.S., released the following statement regarding bipartisan primary care and health workforce legislation:

"We at Sun Life applaud members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee for coming together on a bipartisan basis to sponsor a bill that could expand access to primary healthcare across the nation.

Sun Life is dedicated to helping people navigate our complicated U.S. healthcare system to access the care they need. But the system itself is in trouble – there aren't enough nurses, primary care physicians and other providers to meet the needs of our communities. For example, through our DentaQuest business, we're the largest provider of dental benefits for Medicaid programs in the U.S. and have seen firsthand the challenges that exist when members live in dental deserts – places with too few dentists to serve the region. People who live in these deserts are forced to visit hospital emergency rooms ill-equipped to provide dental care. They are more likely to have dental disease, get late-stage diagnoses from lack of regular dental care, and spend more time and money dealing with resulting oral health issues.

Thankfully, Senators Roger Marshall and Bernie Sanders worked diligently to introduce a bipartisan bill that will bolster the healthcare workforce and create greater access to care for people across the country in a cost-effective way. We at Sun Life U.S. applaud the Marshall-Sanders agreement that provides more than $26 billion in funding to support community health centers, expand dental and mental healthcare access within those health centers, strengthen school-based health services, and increase opportunities for nursing and primary care physician training. The bill also includes funding for the National Health Service Corps, providing 2,100 scholarships and debt forgiveness for roughly 20,000 doctors, nurses, dentists, mental health providers and other care professionals who commit to working in underserved communities.

We need bold moves to ensure greater access to healthcare for all, and this legislation demonstrates our leaders' ongoing efforts to find a bipartisan path forward – protecting America's health, budget and future.

We urge the Senators' colleagues to support this important proposal."  

About Sun Life 
Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing asset management, wealth, insurance and health solutions to individual and institutional Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of June 30, 2023, Sun Life had total assets under management of C$1.37 trillion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

Sun Life U.S. is one of the largest providers of employee and government benefits, helping more than 50 million Americans access the healthcare and coverage they need. Through employers, industry partners and government programs, Sun Life U.S. offers a portfolio of benefits and services, including dental, vision, disability, absence management, life, supplemental health, medical stop-loss insurance, and healthcare navigation. Sun Life employs nearly 8,300 people in the U.S., including associates in our partner dental practices and affiliated companies in asset management. Group insurance policies are issued by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Wellesley Hills, Mass.), except in New York, where policies are issued by Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.) (Lansing, Mich.). For more information visit our website and newsroom.

Direct Media Inquiries to:   Maya Linsonmaya.linson@improvingoralhealth.com
202-794-3738

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SOURCE Sun Life U.S.