Government finally moving on some $$$ for fighting Zika

[JakeStarkey]

I wish Obama and the House on sensible items such as fighting Zika would move faster but it looks like a breakthrough at last. House Republicans push own Zika plan

WASHINGTON (CNN) – House Republicans, who have resisted approving the $1.9 billion that President Barack Obama requested to combat the Zika virus, now are preparing their own spending package and are aiming for a vote as early as next Wednesday.

Ever since they sent the request to Capitol Hill, the White House has complained that Republicans are ignoring a public health crisis and need to sign off on more money soon, especially before the potential risks from the mosquito-borne virus increase with the summer months.

House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters the bill he plans to introduce Monday will provide “less than a billion” for Zika and the money will be targeted for agencies to spend right away.

Rogers and other congressional Republicans said they hadn’t acted before now because the Obama administration wasn’t giving Congress the details on how they would spent the $1.9 billion they wanted, and they were working through their own analysis on how much the various agencies needed to deal with the immediate needs. House conservatives also demanded that any new money for Zika needs to be paid for with cuts to other programs.

“It’s adequate funding to face the problem,” Rogers said about his new legislation.

He also stressed that the bill is “fully offset” but declined to say where the money was coming from, saying his committee was still finalizing those details. But the White House and congressional Democrats argue in these cases Congress doesn’t traditionally specify cuts to pay for additional funding.

“We don’t offset emergency funding, period. And this is the definition of a public health emergency,” one Democratic aide on the House Appropriations panel told CNN.

Asked why Republicans are now moving forward with a bill after they disagreed with the White House’s proposal, Rogers said he is concerned about the virus and wants to “act as quickly as we can.”

Separately, the Senate this week worked out a bipartisan $1.1 billion Zika proposal that they plan to attach to a separate spending bill. The vote on that proposal is scheduled for next Tuesday and it is expected to pass. The Senate will also vote on two competing proposals — one from the two Florida senators, Bill Nelson, a Democrat, and Marco Rubio, a Republican. It would fully fund the President’s request. The second is from Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would provide about $1 billion and be offset with cuts elsewhere. Those last two proposals are not expected to pass.

The two chambers would still need to negotiate a final package before sending to the President for his signature.

Rogers said he has consulted with Democrats on the House panel, but he expected that they would continue to push for the administration’s larger figure of $1.9 billion.



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[waltky]

Senate to consider more money to fight zika...

US Weighs More Zika Funding
May 16, 2016 - The U.S. Congress is set this week to consider several measures to fund research into a vaccine for the deadly Zika mosquito virus and a plan to control mosquitoes that spread the disease.

The question remains, however, how much lawmakers are willing to spend to curb the virus that can cause the birth defect microcephaly, which leaves babies with small heads and deformed brains, and impairs growth. Three months ago, President Barack Obama proposed a $1.9 billion plan to develop a vaccine, control the mosquitoes and help other countries fight the virus. But his Republican opponents in Congress said that was too costly and balked at approving it. Republicans in the House of Representatives offered a $622 million proposal Monday for vaccine development and international mosquito control.

The Senate is planning to start voting Tuesday on Obama's plan, a competing Republican alternative and a compromise measure costing $1.1 billion. Even if these measures clear the two chambers, the outlines for a final accord are not clear. To date, there have been more than 500 cases of Zika contamination in the United States, all of which so far have been associated with overseas travel. Last week, Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory in the Caribbean Sea, reported its first case of Zika-borne microcephaly.

US Weighs More Zika Funding

 

[waltky]

$1.1 Billion in Counter-Zika Funding Approved by Senate...

Zika Funding Clears US Senate
May 17, 2016 — The U.S. Senate approved $1.1 billion to combat the Zika virus – significantly less than the Obama administration’s $1.9 billion request, but almost double the funding being considered in the House of Representatives.

Tuesday’s 68-29 vote came after the Republican-led Senate voted down the White House’s full request, which was made in February as U.S. health officials warned that Zika could spread through large swaths of the nation.
The mosquito-borne virus can cause devastating birth defects and has been linked to a debilitating neurological disorder. “We need to better control mosquitos that carry the Zika virus. We need to raise awareness to make sure families are informed about this disease, and accelerate the development of a vaccine,” said Democratic Senator Patty Murray of Washington State, who co-authored the bipartisan compromise bill.

For weeks, many Republicans insisted they needed more information on how funds would be spent. Some also demanded that other programs be cut to cover the costs of fighting Zika. “Let’s deal with this threat in a fiscally-responsible way,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas. “There is no reason to gratuitously add to the deficit and the debt.” Cornyn proposed an alternative of his own that would have siphoned funds from other disease-prevention appropriations to pay for the fight against Zika. Democrats banded together to defeat it, joined by Republican Marco Rubio.

Rubio represents Florida, the state thought to be at greatest immediate risk of a Zika outbreak. He warned that Congress would be held to account if lawmakers shortchange Zika funding and large numbers of Americans fall ill. “Why take the chance that you are going to have to go home in August and September and explain to millions of people across this country why you were low-balling our approach to it [Zika]?” Rubio asked. “Let’s do this once. Let’s get it right. Let’s ensure that we are protecting our people. Let’s deal with this now.”
The Senate-approved Zika measure faces an uncertain fate in the House of Representatives, where majority-Republicans are considering a proposal to redirect $622 million previously appropriated to fight Ebola. Those funds would be merged with more than $500 million the Obama administration is already siphoning from Ebola programs. "We're re-prioritizing existing funds to make sure that the Zika attack is fully funded,” said Republican Congressman Steve Scalise.

MORE

See also:

Zika to Top World Health Assembly Agenda
May 17, 2016 — The chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) says the Zika virus and other health emergencies will top the body’s annual assembly, which meets next week in Geneva.

WHO Director-General Margaret Chan says the more that is known about the Zika virus and particularly its impact on pregnant women, the more worrisome it becomes. Zika currently is circulating in 59 countries, among them Brazil, which is hosting this year’s Summer Olympic Games. While Brazil is in the forefront of the epidemic, Dr. Chan says WHO does not support a travel ban to the Games.

Chan does, however, advise caution, especially for pregnant women who could give birth to babies with brain abnormalities if they become infected with the virus. “Pregnant women should avoid traveling to these places who are reporting local infection.… Another important point is men who travel to these countries, including to the Olympics, should they be infected when they get home, they must practice safe sex, particularly if their partners or spouse are pregnant. So, they need to use a condom for the entire duration of the pregnancy,” she said.

More money for Zika fight sought

Chan says many lessons have been learned from the Ebola epidemic in West Africa; but, in order to apply these lessons to better contain the spread of newly emerging threats, such as Zika, she says the WHO will ask the assembly for a budgetary increase of $160 million dollars for the next two years.

The WHO chief tells VOA there are many other communicable and non-communicable diseases of great concern, with 76 health issues to be considered at the assembly. The meeting is expected to be the biggest ever, with some 3,100 delegates from the WHO’s 194 member countries in attendance. One of the biggest concerns, she says, remains that of maternal mortality. “We still see close to 300,000 women die unnecessarily giving birth…. In poor countries, about [a] one in 60 chance of a woman dying from giving birth - one in 60 - in wealthy countries, one in 4,900. This is [a] huge inequity,” she said. Chan says sexual reproductive health must be made accessible to young people so they have the ability to make the sexual and family planning choices that are right for them.

Zika to Top World Health Assembly Agenda

 

[Skull Pilot]

Yeah the latest scare the sheep money grab

Like SARS, Ebola, Bird Flu, Swine Flu, etc

 

[waltky]

Move Olympics over Zika, scientists say...

Zika crisis: Rio Olympics 'should be moved or postponed'
Fri, 27 May 2016 - More than 100 leading scientists say the Rio Olympics should be moved or postponed due to the Zika outbreak, in a letter to the World Health Organization.

The group says new findings about the virus make it "unethical" for the games to go ahead in an open letter to the World Health Organization. They call on the WHO to urgently revise its guidelines on Zika, which is linked to serious birth defects. The International Olympic Committee said in May it sees no reason to delay or move the games due to Zika. The outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease began in Brazil a year ago, but now more than 60 countries and territories have continuing transmission. Zika's symptoms are mild, but in the letter the experts say it causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads and may also cause a rare and sometimes fatal neurological syndrome in adults.

The Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro overlooks the Maracana Stadium​

The letter is signed by 150 international scientists, doctors and medical ethicists from such institutions as Oxford University and Harvard and Yale universities in the United States. They cite the the failure of a mosquito-eradication programme in Brazil, and the country's "weakened" health system as reasons to postpone or move the Olympics in "the name of public health". "An unnecessary risk is posed when 500,000 foreign tourists from all countries attend the Games, potentially acquire that strain, and return home to places where it can become endemic," the letter says. The biggest risk, it adds, is if athletes contracted the virus and returned home to poor countries that had not yet suffered a Zika outbreak.

The Rio Olympics take place between 5-21 August. The WHO, which has declared the Zika virus a global public health emergency, is yet to comment on the letter. On Thursday, the head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, whose advice is quoted approvingly in the letter, said the threat did not warrant halting the games. "There is no public health reason to cancel or delay the Olympics," Dr Tom Frieden said. But he also urged the US to act more quickly to prevent pregnant women contracting Zika, amid congressional deadlock over the release of $1.9bn (£1.3bn) in funding.

Zika crisis: Rio Olympics 'should be moved or postponed' - BBC News

 

[Militants]

In Nigeria.

No chances.

Global terrorism.

 

[waltky]

Senate gets dire assessment on zika...

US Senators Warned on Zika After Failing to Pass Funding
June 29, 2016 — One day after Zika funding failed in the Senate, U.S. lawmakers heard a sobering assessment of the virus' potential to do harm and America's lack of preparedness to fight the mosquito that carries it.

The deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Anne Schuchat, noted that more than 500 pregnant women in the United States have contracted Zika, and the number is certain to rise. "We need the states to be able to detect, respond [to] and prevent infections," Schuchat told the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday. "We need to strengthen surveillance for the disease and for mosquitoes. We need to do everything we can to control the mosquitoes."

Evaristo Miqueli, a natural resources officer with Broward County Mosquito Control, looks through a microscope at Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in Pembroke Pines, Florida, June 28, 2016. The mosquitoes were collected from a residential home during a routine inspection, as part of the county's mosquito control procedure.​

Many U.S. states, however, lack a coordinated mosquito eradication program, according to the head of the American Mosquito Control Association, T. Wayne Gale. "Especially for those states that don't have any existing programs, you can't stand up [create] mosquito control infrastructure overnight," Gale said, adding that keeping mosquitoes in check is labor-intensive and equipment-intensive, and training staff for new programs across the country takes time.

Focus on contraception

Senators also heard unsettling new medical data concerning the virus, which few researchers had focused on prior to last year. Christopher Zahn of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists noted that the risk of a congenital heart defect in a newborn is about 1 percent, but the risk of a Zika infection causing a birth defect like microcephaly is 13 percent or higher. With no vaccine on the immediate horizon and America's mosquito season well underway, Zahn said, "The only guaranteed way to prevent [Zika birth defects] is contraception. So access to contraception both domestically and abroad is crucial to address this issue."

Robert Muxo of the Miami-Dade County Mosquito Control department, takes a sample of water that was standing in a potted plant in Miami, June 21, 2016. The department was responding to complaints about mosquitoes by a neighborhood resident.​

Access to contraception became a central point of contention in the Senate debate leading up to Tuesday's vote blocking the $1.1 billion to fight Zika. Democrats objected when a majority of Republicans inserted cost offsets that included a cut in funds to Planned Parenthood, a major provider of birth control to women. "Women are concerned about birth control," said Minority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat. "For a majority of young women, [Planned Parenthood] is the only place they have to go [for contraceptives]."

Six-weeks pregnant Daniela Rodriguez, 19, waits for test results after being diagnosed with the Zika virus at Erasmo Meoz Hospital in Cucuta. Norte de Santander state has Colombia's highest Zika virus cases​

Republicans argued that Democrats bear the blame for scuttling Congress' last opportunity to act on Zika before both houses adjourn for next week's Independence Day holiday. "Families don't want excuses. They want action," said Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "In the midst of mosquito season, Democrats chose partisan politics over $1.1 billion in critical funds to protect pregnant women and babies from Zika."

Vaccines and funding

 

[Weatherman2020]

I wish Obama and the House on sensible items such as fighting Zika would move faster but it looks like a breakthrough at last. House Republicans push own Zika plan

WASHINGTON (CNN) – House Republicans, who have resisted approving the $1.9 billion that President Barack Obama requested to combat the Zika virus, now are preparing their own spending package and are aiming for a vote as early as next Wednesday.

Ever since they sent the request to Capitol Hill, the White House has complained that Republicans are ignoring a public health crisis and need to sign off on more money soon, especially before the potential risks from the mosquito-borne virus increase with the summer months.

House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters the bill he plans to introduce Monday will provide “less than a billion” for Zika and the money will be targeted for agencies to spend right away.

Rogers and other congressional Republicans said they hadn’t acted before now because the Obama administration wasn’t giving Congress the details on how they would spent the $1.9 billion they wanted, and they were working through their own analysis on how much the various agencies needed to deal with the immediate needs. House conservatives also demanded that any new money for Zika needs to be paid for with cuts to other programs.

“It’s adequate funding to face the problem,” Rogers said about his new legislation.

He also stressed that the bill is “fully offset” but declined to say where the money was coming from, saying his committee was still finalizing those details. But the White House and congressional Democrats argue in these cases Congress doesn’t traditionally specify cuts to pay for additional funding.

“We don’t offset emergency funding, period. And this is the definition of a public health emergency,” one Democratic aide on the House Appropriations panel told CNN.

Asked why Republicans are now moving forward with a bill after they disagreed with the White House’s proposal, Rogers said he is concerned about the virus and wants to “act as quickly as we can.”

Separately, the Senate this week worked out a bipartisan $1.1 billion Zika proposal that they plan to attach to a separate spending bill. The vote on that proposal is scheduled for next Tuesday and it is expected to pass. The Senate will also vote on two competing proposals — one from the two Florida senators, Bill Nelson, a Democrat, and Marco Rubio, a Republican. It would fully fund the President’s request. The second is from Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would provide about $1 billion and be offset with cuts elsewhere. Those last two proposals are not expected to pass.

The two chambers would still need to negotiate a final package before sending to the President for his signature.

Rogers said he has consulted with Democrats on the House panel, but he expected that they would continue to push for the administration’s larger figure of $1.9 billion.



HEADLINES
House Republicans push own Zika plan
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Yes, it’s time to think about the 2020 presidential race
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URGENT – California Ventilator Legal Fight Ruling
Grassley to feds: Did ‘El Chapo’ enter the U.S. undetected?
Obama administration issues guidance on transgender access to school bathrooms

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Why do Democrats keep voting no to fund for Zika.

 

[JakeStarkey]

Why do Democrats keep voting no to fund for Zika.

The Dems are not letting the pubs politicize the issue and of course are making huge campaign receipts from far right stupidity.

 

[waltky]

Congress dropped the ball on zika funding, now it's here...

Florida Zika Cases Trigger Alarms in Washington
July 31, 2016 | Zika-carrying mosquitos are believed to have reached the U.S. mainland, with at least four cases of local transmission reported in Florida.

U.S. health officials sounded the warning on Zika months ago, and confirmation of its arrival prompted a new round of finger pointing between Democratic and Republican lawmakers who have yet to approve funds to fight the virus or the mosquitos that spread it. “I call on GOP Congressional leadership to #doyourjob & interrupt recess to immediately address #Zika public health crisis,” tweeted Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. For most Americans, mosquitos are a summertime annoyance. Florida must now treat them as a public health menace. “Four people in our state likely have the virus as a result of a mosquito bite,” said Florida Governor Rick Scott. “This means Florida has become the first state in our nation to have local transmission of the Zika virus.”

Residents and visitors along America’s Gulf Coast are expressing varying degrees of apprehension. “It does concern me for my children and my grandchildren,” said Jimmy Stewart in Galveston, Texas. “But I don’t know if it’s going to do you any good to be real worried about it because, if it’s here, it’s here.” The Florida cases confirm what health officials predicted earlier this year: that Zika, which can cause abnormalities in newborns, would one day be contracted from mosquitos found in large swaths of the United States. Congress adjourned in mid-July and will not get back to work until September.

Evaristo Miqueli, a natural resources officer with Broward County Mosquito Control, takes water samples decanted from a watering jug, checking for the presence of mosquito larvae in Pembroke Pines, Fla.​

In February, the Obama administration requested $1.9 billion to fight Zika. The Senate initially agreed to $1.1 billion of new spending. But negotiations between the Republican-led House and Senate yielded a bill with stipulations Democrats could not support concerning an abortion provider, the environment, and the display of the Confederate flag. “What did the Republican leadership in Congress produce? Unfortunately, it produced a package that is totally partisan and destined to fail, and they knew it,” said Richard Durbin of Illinois after banding together with other Democrats to block the Republican-backed legislation. “It’s inexplicable and unacceptable to not be able, on a bipartisan basis, to address this important public health care crisis,” lamented Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. “Every pregnant woman in America is following this issue. We need to act.”

Experts expect Zika-carrying mosquitos Zika to spread beyond Florida. “Miami has a very similar climate as Houston,” said Dr. Todd Price, an infectious disease specialist. “Miami has the same mosquitos as Houston, and across the Gulf Coast. And so this is of urgency.” Lawmakers will continue the battle over Zika funding when they return to Washington in September. For now, local and state governments must do the best they can to monitor and control mosquito populations with existing resources.

Forida #Zika cases trigger alarms in Washington

See also:

Four Zika Cases, Likely Locally Transmitted, Reported in Florida
July 29, 2016 - The Southern state of Florida has reported four cases of the Zika virus, seemingly not linked to travel, Florida Governor Rick Scott told a press conference Friday.

"Florida has become the first state in our country to have a local transmission of the Zika virus," Scott said. Until now, about 1,650 cases of Zika reported in the U.S. had been linked to travel to countries in Latin America or the Caribbean that are facing outbreaks. The four Florida cases are contained to a small area north of downtown Miami, Scott said, quoting state health officials.

Miami-Dade mosquito control worker Carlos Vargas pointing to the Aedes aegypti mosquito larvae at a home in Miami, Florida.​

White House spokesman Eric Schultz said President Barack Obama was briefed about the situation Friday morning. He said the Obama administration is supporting the efforts of Scott, who he praised for aggressively testing the area for the Zika virus and preparing for quite some time for a potential outbreak. Florida has requested $15 million in emergency Zika funding to collect and test mosquitoes and provide Zika preparedness programs, among other things. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it has provided $8 million.

OneBlood, Florida's main supplier of blood donations, has said it will be testing all of its supply for the Zika virus. The mosquito that carries the Zika virus is found in southern U.S. states. Health officials predicted that the virus would begin spreading this summer and have tried to contain it to isolated areas. Though the virus is relatively mild in most cases, many pregnant women who are infected with Zika give birth to babies with a congenital defect called microcephaly, which causes an abnormally small head. More than 1,600 such cases have been reported in Brazil, where the outbreak began last year.

Four Zika Cases, Likely Locally Transmitted, Reported in Florida

 

[Arianrhod]

I wish Obama and the House on sensible items such as fighting Zika would move faster but it looks like a breakthrough at last. House Republicans push own Zika plan

WASHINGTON (CNN) – House Republicans, who have resisted approving the $1.9 billion that President Barack Obama requested to combat the Zika virus, now are preparing their own spending package and are aiming for a vote as early as next Wednesday.

Ever since they sent the request to Capitol Hill, the White House has complained that Republicans are ignoring a public health crisis and need to sign off on more money soon, especially before the potential risks from the mosquito-borne virus increase with the summer months.

House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters the bill he plans to introduce Monday will provide “less than a billion” for Zika and the money will be targeted for agencies to spend right away.

Rogers and other congressional Republicans said they hadn’t acted before now because the Obama administration wasn’t giving Congress the details on how they would spent the $1.9 billion they wanted, and they were working through their own analysis on how much the various agencies needed to deal with the immediate needs. House conservatives also demanded that any new money for Zika needs to be paid for with cuts to other programs.

“It’s adequate funding to face the problem,” Rogers said about his new legislation.

He also stressed that the bill is “fully offset” but declined to say where the money was coming from, saying his committee was still finalizing those details. But the White House and congressional Democrats argue in these cases Congress doesn’t traditionally specify cuts to pay for additional funding.

“We don’t offset emergency funding, period. And this is the definition of a public health emergency,” one Democratic aide on the House Appropriations panel told CNN.

Asked why Republicans are now moving forward with a bill after they disagreed with the White House’s proposal, Rogers said he is concerned about the virus and wants to “act as quickly as we can.”

Separately, the Senate this week worked out a bipartisan $1.1 billion Zika proposal that they plan to attach to a separate spending bill. The vote on that proposal is scheduled for next Tuesday and it is expected to pass. The Senate will also vote on two competing proposals — one from the two Florida senators, Bill Nelson, a Democrat, and Marco Rubio, a Republican. It would fully fund the President’s request. The second is from Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would provide about $1 billion and be offset with cuts elsewhere. Those last two proposals are not expected to pass.

The two chambers would still need to negotiate a final package before sending to the President for his signature.

Rogers said he has consulted with Democrats on the House panel, but he expected that they would continue to push for the administration’s larger figure of $1.9 billion.



HEADLINES
House Republicans push own Zika plan
Clinton campaign tax ad: What’s Donald Trump hiding?
Warren Buffett-backed group in bid for Yahoo
Yes, it’s time to think about the 2020 presidential race
Dog rescued from shelter saves little girl from dangerous snake
Donald Trump on recording: Not me
Police: One of the world’s rarest fish died after drunken break-in
Mastodon bones offer clues of earliest humans in North America
Sheriff Joe Arpaio, three others found in civil contempt
Trump’s past surfaces as GOP looks forward
Nigeria’s Giwa barracks ‘place of death,’ rights group says
Judge declines to stop release of ‘Bridgegate’ conspirator list
URGENT – California Ventilator Legal Fight Ruling
Grassley to feds: Did ‘El Chapo’ enter the U.S. undetected?
Obama administration issues guidance on transgender access to school bathrooms

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It's the usual dilemma. Viruses don't follow human rules. Earmark funding for something like this and the numbers affected are small, and you have people screaming about "nanny-state government and "wasting money." If a disease gets out of hand and affects millions, then the wail from the same people is "government didn't do enough - the feds are full of fail!"

A basic understanding of science would be helpful, but between home-schoolers and antivaxxers (and the overlap between them), Americans know less now than they did a generation ago.