Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell unveiled the republican’s next-gen coronavirus relief bill, which they’ve dubbed the HEALS Act (for Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools, which actually spells HEALPS), but the proposal doesn’t address major concerns facing American families and workers.

The $1 trillion HEALS Act cuts unemployment federal supplemental payments to $200 per week, vital assistance to more than 50 million Americans who have filed for unemployment assistance since the pandemic hit US shores.  Like the House initiative passed in May, it provides one-time payments to taxpayers, with the HEALS act setting that amount on $1,200.

The HEALS Act extends funding for the Paycheck Protection Program, limiting it to companies with 300 employees without putting a cap on revenues reported by those companies.  It also provides additional funding for small business loans.

While there’s no extensive assistance to provide health care or coronavirus treatment to American communities, the bill provides liability protection to employers, including hospitals, that demand workers return to their jobs from being sued for damages if employees contract the coronavirus.

Unlike the Democrat proposal, it does not provide any assistance to state and local governments, which will face financial strife due to reduced tax revenues and additional spending during the pandemic.  Instead of providing additional financial aid, the republicans opted to allow broader use of a $150 billion pot of funds from the first relief bill; city and state governments have requested more than $1 trillion in aid.

The republican proposal puts aside $105 billion for schools, with $70 billion of those funds for K-12 schools that plan to reopen for in-classroom education.  The fund also provide block grants, reportedly $7 billion, to states to be used for “scholarships” for parents who send their children to private schools, a pet project of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

The only health programs funded are $16 billion for additional testing; $16 billion for the National Institutes of Health; and $3 billion for the CDC for coronavirus research.  There is no funding for contact tracing or treatment in needy communities.

The HEALS Act does not provide any assistance to school systems for remote-learning programs, student loan debt relief, or hazard pay for essential workers.  It does, however, institute a 100% tax deduction for business meals at restaurants.