Under the Gold Dome, Week of January 15, 2020
Friends —
With the start of the New Year and the official beginning of my first term as a State Senator for the 156th Georgia General Assembly, the challenges of the former year have highlighted the theme of our work here at the state Capitol.
While this undoubtedly will be a fast-paced and eventful session, and I am humbled and grateful to be given the opportunity to represent Georgia and our community in District 48. I’d like to thank you for the endless support you have given me, and I promise to advocate for your needs throughout the legislative session.
I believe Monday set the tone for the rest of my term here. Surrounded by family and new colleagues, I took the oath of office and swore to serve ethically, with kindness and humility. These values mirror those instilled in me from a young age and have always served at the forefront of my work, both in the political sphere and as a phsycian. I look forward to continuing my service in this new capacity and fighting for the needs of the people of Georgia.
I am excited to announce I have been chosen to serve on four Senate standing committees: Health and Human Services, State and Local Governmental Operations, Science and Technology, and Retirement.
While each one plays a critical role in working for the people of our state, I must admit I am most looking forward to contributing to our conversations around public health and patient advocacy.
I was proud to sign on to my first pieces of legislation this week, on a bipartisan bill in protecting patients undergoing procedural sedation in the outpatient setting.
As a medical professional with an advanced degree in public health, I recognize that the health of our communities extends far beyond bedside medicine. That is why I am thrilled to share that I am also sponsoring legislation that would require universal background checks for all private and public weapons purchases.
Thursday was perhaps our busiest day yet. We listened to Gov. Brian Kemp deliver his State of the State address, and supported our leadership in delivering the Democratic response. As we know, 2020 was a challenging year for our state — medically, socially and economically, and much of our efforts in the weeks and months ahead will be centered on finding legislative solutions to these obstacles.
Recognizing the growing number of hospitalizations and current deficiencies with vaccine distribution, a significant priority will be allocating enough funds in the budget to expand medical access to Georgians everywhere. Other key areas will be supplementing our education systems, which received large budget cuts last year, protecting voting rights, and enacting large criminal justice reform to address social and racial inequity. I have already signed on to several pieces of legislation including repealing citizen’s arrest, requiring ballot drop boxes at all early voting locations, and child care tax credits, among others, as we start to tackle these issues head on.
Public health, as we have seen, will remain at the forefront during the 2021 Legislative Session as we continue to deal with the effects of COVID-19 in our communities and local hospitals. I am grateful for all of the preventative measures that have been put in place to help alleviate the spread of the virus here at the capitol, and for the diligence of leadership in keeping our legislators and staff safe.
On Thursday, I took to the well on the Senate floor to speak directly to my colleagues about the primary issues we are facing down with our continued COVID-19 response and how they can help disseminate information to their districts.
There are three challenges we face in this moment: limited vaccine allocation, logistical difficulties in deploying the vaccines we have, and vaccine hesitancy in communities. You can watch my full Point of Personal Privilege, where I walk through each of these challenges, and propose some solutions I hope we will all take on, both as a legislature and as individuals.
As you can imagine, my top priority this week has been to share information and resources about vaccine distribution. The vast majority of calls and emails from constituents have been from people frustrated by our vaccine rollout. I was honored to join GPB’s Lawmakers on Tuesday evening to share my thoughts on this particular issue. You can catch my take below.
Additionally, I joined Representative Angelika Kausche on Thursday evening in hosting a public forum to answer some of District 48’s top concerns around the Georgia’s COVID response, particularly with respect to our COVID vaccine rollout efforts. We heard from Dr. Audrey Arona and Alana Sulka of the Gwinnett, Newton and Rockdale Departments of Health, as well as Jessica Corbitt from Fulton County’s Government Affairs Office. They provided a very clear picture of where we are and our plans moving forward. You can watch the full conversation below.
Next week, we will take a pause in official legislative days in order for members of both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to conduct “Budget Week,” allowing state agency heads to provide a full outline of their budgetary needs for the Fiscal Year. However, this is not a week off! Our office is continuing to work diligently to draft and fine tune legislation, as well as keep all of you informed on the current developments at our state capitol.
When we return on January 26th, we will hit the ground running with committees and legislation. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office. I am here because of you, and I want to serve as your voice.
In service,
Paid for by Dr. Michelle Au for State Senate, Inc.
5805 States Bridge Road, Suite G237
Johns Creek, GA 30097
