Subject: FYI: Republican Zika Bill: Many Days Late; Many Dollars Short
From: Dem Leader Press Office <[email-masked]>
To: Undisclosed recipients:;
Date: Mon, 16 May 2016 18:14:40 +0000

For Immediate Release
May 16, 2016
Contact: Matt Dennis 202-225-3481

Republican Zika Bill: Many Days Late; Many Dollars Short

Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY), Ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, today released the following statement regarding House Republicans’ Zika supplemental appropriations bill:

“Three months after President Obama requested emergency funding to protect American communities from the Zika virus, the Republican majority’s response is completely insufficient given the severity of the public health emergency facing the Western Hemisphere.

“The majority’s decision to underfund the President’s request by $1.3 billion risks worsening an already severe crisis.  Without full funding, private sector work on vaccines and diagnostic testing will be delayed due to the lack of multi-year funding commitments.  State and local public health emergency preparedness grants will be underfunded, hampering efforts to control mosquito populations.  Failing to replenish Ebola accounts will force us to renege on commitments to fortify public health systems and hurt our ability to respond to new outbreaks.

“Pinching pennies on these basic investments will inevitably heighten costs – in dollars and lives – down the road.

“I am also extremely disappointed the majority is holding this emergency to a different standard than Ebola or H1N1 emergencies or disaster relief supplementals, demanding offsets as a condition of providing needed funding.  Our sole focus should be on containing and ultimately ending this crisis – not trying to force more reckless funding cuts through Congress.”

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