As Senate Prepares to Vote on Zika Money, Schatz Calls for Full Funding to Fight Zika
Senate Expected To Vote on Zika Funding Next Week
WASHINGTON – As the Senate prepares to vote on funding options to address the Zika virus, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, called for fully funding President Obama’s $1.9 billion request.
“Zika is a public health emergency,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. “I am glad that senators from both sides of the aisle have finally come together on a deal to provide the critical funding needed to address Zika. I look forward to a vote on this funding so that we can keep our communities, states, and nation safe and healthy.”
In April, Senator Schatz visited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters and met with top officials to discuss the CDC’s response to outbreaks of dengue and Zika. During the meetings, Senator Schatz called for stronger vector-control programs to fight the spread of mosquito-borne viruses. Zika and dengue are transmitted by the same mosquito population, making vector-control programs a key component of preventing outbreaks. Schatz also led eight senators in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to increase funding for vector-control programs at the CDC. He also spoke twice on the Senate floor last week stressing the urgency of Zika and the need to fully fund the administration’s $1.9 billion request.
During an appropriations hearing in February, Senator Schatz urged the Director of the CDC, Dr. Tom Frieden, to coordinate with state and local governments to improve vector-control programs to help stop the spread of both dengue and Zika.
