BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) spoke to hundreds of Maine employees of Sun Life, a financial services organization that recently expanded its workforce at their Portland location, to discuss the implications of coronavirus on Maine people and the aid included in the bipartisan coronavirus package that passed the Senate earlier this week – moments before that bill passed the House of Representatives and was sent to the President’s desk to be signed into law. A day after taking questions from Maine residents on Thursday’s “Maine Calling” program, King telephoned in to address the concerns of additional Maine people in a call that can be heard by listening here.  In the days and weeks ahead, Senator King will continue to connect with Maine people – via phone or teleconferencing technologies to demonstrate social distancing practices – and share information about resources available to support Maine families and communities during this challenging time.

“As the coronavirus epidemic rapidly changes nearly every aspect of our society, I want to do everything I can to make sure Maine people are up-to-date on the actions being taken to combat this crisis at the federal level – and I wish I could do it in person, but we need to be extremely careful right now to flatten the curve,” said Senator King. “The legislation we passed this week will provide much-needed aid to our state’s healthcare system, support workers who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own, and give vital relief to businesses across Maine that are facing immense challenge.  I am committed to making sure that Maine people across the state know what help is available, and to listen for what else we need to do to overcome these obstacles so that we can get through this, together.”

“This is a stressful time for everyone, and we appreciate this kind of support and engagement with our state leaders,” said Kathy Edelman, Gorham resident and AVP at Sun Life. “It was great to hear the optimism from Senator King that we can and will get through this tough time.”