Press Releases

Rep. Larsen is working to reform health care to bring down costs for families and businesses, expand coverage and ban discrimination based on age or gender, or on preexisting conditions such as diabetes or cancer.  And he is working to ensure that health care reform brings a fair deal for Washington state. Rep. Larsen will focus on health care reform at the following community… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) released the following statement today on news that NOAA has selected Newport, Oregon instead of Bellingham as the new site for the Marine Operations Center-Pacific:  “I had hoped for a different decision.  I have long believed that Bellingham would offer the best new home for NOAA’s Marine Operations… Read more »

U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) will host five Conversations with Veterans during the month of August to update local veterans about his work in Congress on their behalf and to hear from local veterans about the issues important to them. This year, Larsen has worked to strengthen veterans’ health care and services, helping deliver a new community-based outpatient clinic to… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) today announced more than $1 million in recovery dollars for local police departments in Burlington, Everett and Snohomish, Washington. The funding is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and will help communities hire and retain cops during the economic downturn. “During these tight economic times, we cannot… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) has secured funding for a new behavioral health center at Skagit Valley Hospital in Mount Vernon and for emergency preparedness at St. Joseph's Hospital in Bellingham in a House funding bill for fiscal year 2010.  In the 2nd District and across the country, the Labor, Health and Human Services (Labor-HHS) appropriations bill would invest… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) today praised an agreement that brings Congress one step closer to passing health care reform that works for Washington state.  The deal was reached between House leadership and a health care ‘quality coalition’ of Members of Congress including Larsen, other Washington Democrats and Representatives from sixteen other… Read more »

Two hundred days before the Winter Olympics begin in Vancouver, B.C, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) joined U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano on her first visit to Northwest Washington as DHS Secretary. Secretary Napolitano, Governor Chris Gregoire, Congressman Larsen and local leaders visited the 2010 Olympics Coordination Center in Bellingham… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) secured funding for Skagit and Snohomish County transportation projects in a House funding bill. The funding passed the House as part of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill by a vote of 256 - 168 and must clear the Senate before being signed into law. “Investing in roads and transit creates… Read more »

Today U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) voted for a fiscal responsibility bill that requires Congress to offset spending with savings elsewhere in the budget. Under the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act 2009, any net costs of legislation enacted during a session of Congress must be offset with an across-the-board reduction in certain mandatory programs.  The… Read more »

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) returned Monday night from a congressional fact-finding trip to U.S. military facilities at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Due to House Armed Services Committee security protocol, Larsen was unable to notify the public in advance of his trip. Photos from the trip will be available on request. “During my visit to the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, I… Read more »