Zika and the Democrats Obama is sitting on money and methods to slow the virus. Instead he blames Congress.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/zika-and-the-democrats-1470178179
The Zika virus is only beginning to hit the U.S. mainland, but its political exploitation is already an epidemic. To wit, the Obama Administration that is sitting on money and methods to reduce the Zika outbreak is using the virus as a political bludgeon to elect more Democrats.
A Zika outbreak hit Miami this week, and the Centers for Disease Control on Monday advised pregnant women to get checked for possible exposure. Women in Miami are being told to cover up, stay indoors and wear insect repellant because the virus can cause malformed brains in the womb. These are sensible precautions, but it would be better if the government wasn’t dysfunctional in spending the money it has and eradicating the mosquitoes that carry the disease.
About 6,400 cases of Zika have been confirmed in the U.S. and its territories, though only one in five who are infected show symptoms. Most cases in the continental U.S. have been individuals who have traveled to regions with an epidemic, particularly Latin and Central America. While the virus can be transmitted sexually, it is commonly spread by mosquitoes. The infection risk peaks in the summer.
The White House that is responsible for public health is trying to blame Congress while ducking its own failures. “The keys here are sitting with Congress, and they have to turn them to unleash more federal funding,” White House press secretary Eric Schultz said Friday.
He should talk to Harry Reid and Chuck Schumer because Senate Democrats blocked Zika funding. The Administration in February requested $1.9 billion for Zika research, education and prevention. Last month the Senate and House agreed to a $1.1 billion compromise that was offset by $543 million in leftover ObamaCare funds when Puerto Rico chose to expand Medicaid rather than set up exchanges. The bill also temporarily waived duplicative permitting requirements for anti-mosquito pesticides.
But Senate Democrats blocked the conference report, inventing the excuse that the bill banned funding for Planned Parenthood, restricted access to birth control and gutted the Clean Water Act. None of this is true. Planned Parenthood wasn’t specifically identified on a list of public health clinics and community health centers eligible for funding, but it also wasn’t barred from receiving federal funds as a sub-grantee. CONTINUE AT SITE
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