The U.S. House of Representatives tonight passed emergency legislation to aid in the fight against the spread of Zika in the U.S. The virus is prevalent in Latin America and is spread largely by The Aedes aegypti species of mosquito, putting South Florida on the front lines in the battle.
After voting for H.R. 5243, the Zika Response Appropriations Act, Congressman Curt Clawson (Fl-19) stated:
“I am delighted the House has passed over $600 million in additional funding toward the fight against Zika. This bill is a good start, we will need more. I am optimistic that the figure will increase during the conference between the House and Senate before final passage in both chambers of Congress. Tonight’s bill, while not perfect, allocates more resources immediately for critical priorities such as vaccine development and mosquito control. “
Tonight’s legislation, added over $622 million to already reallocated Ebola funding, bringing the total amount of federal funding to $1.2 billion, toward the fight against Zika. Such reallocation was an idea first put forth earlier this year in a legislation package by Congressman Clawson aimed at preventing the spread of Zika.
On February 1, 2016, the World Health Organization declared a “public health emergency of international concern” over the rapid spread of the Zika virus. The Aedes aegypti species of mosquito, which is the predominate carrier of the Zika virus, also spreads Dengue fever and Chikungunya, making it an even more formidable threat to public health. More than 30 countries and territories have reported local cases of the Zika virus, which, when contracted by pregnant women, is thought to be the cause of a birth defect characterized by an unusually small head and developmental problems.