CDC's Frieden: We're nearly out of money to fight Zika

The federal government is basically out of money to fight the Zika virus, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. Dr. Tom Frieden offered that assessment to a group of reporters as Congress began negotiations on a stopgap spending bill that's also intended to include long-delayed money to battle Zika.
The mosquito-borne virus causes severe birth defects and continues to make inroads into Florida, the only state in the continental U.S. to report local transmission of the virus.
The Associated Press quoted Frieden as saying the country is "about to see a bunch of kids born with microcephaly" in the coming months. Microcephaly is a condition in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and brains. Frieden said Congress' lack of action to approve more Zika funding has hampered research into the virus and production of new tests for it, the news service said.
Congress returned to work Tuesday from its seven-week summer break after failing to agree on additional Zika funding. The Miami area has nearly 60 cases of locally transmitted Zika infection.
While there have been no reported locally transmitted cases of microcephaly in the continental United States, thousands of cases have been documented in Latin America and the Caribbean, with Brazil the epicenter of the outbreak.
Health officials say it's also becoming increasingly clear that the Zika virus can be transmitted through sexual activity.
President Barack Obama in February asked Congress for $1.9 billion in emergency spending to fight Zika.
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives offered $1.1 billion in June, but it came with the provision that none of the money could be given to Planned Parenthood because of that group's endorsement of abortion. Democrats have rejected that provision, saying many lower-income women rely on Planned Parenthood for their health-care needs, particularly in Puerto Rico, where Zika infections are becoming widespread.
HealthDay

 

CDCs Frieden: Were nearly out of money to fight Zika

The federal government is basically out of money to fight the Zika virus, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. Dr. Tom Frieden offered that assessment to a group of reporters as Congress began negotiations on a stopgap spending bill thats also intended to include long-delayed money to battle Zika. The mosquito-borne virus causes severe birth defects and continues to make inroads into Florida, the only state in the continental U.S. to report local transmission of the virus. The Associated Press quoted Frieden as saying the country is about to see a bunch of kids born with microcephaly in the coming months. Microcephaly is a condition in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and brains. Frieden said Congress lack of action to approve more Zika funding has hampered research into the virus and production of new tests for it, the news service said. Congress returned to work Tuesday from its seven-week summer break after failing to agree on additional Zika funding. The Miami area has nearly 60 cases of locally transmitted Zika infection. While there have been no reported locally transmitted cases of microcephaly in the continental United States, thousands of cases have been documented in Latin America and the Caribbean, with Brazil the epicenter of the outbreak. Health officials say its also becoming increasingly clear that the Zika virus can be transmitted through sexual activity. President Barack Obama in February asked Congress for $1.9 billion in emergency spending to fight Zika. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives offered $1.1 billion in June, but it came with the provision that none of the money could be given to Planned Parenthood because of that groups endorsement of abortion. Democrats have rejected that provision, saying many lower-income women rely on Planned Parenthood for their health-care needs, particularly in Puerto Rico, where Zika infections are becoming widespread. HealthDay