by Congresswoman Diana DeGette
Congress has returned to Washington, having failed throughout the spring and summer to take meaningful action on some of the nation’s most pressing problems. Thanks to Republican legislators’ intransigence, we are now confronted by an issue that grew substantially worse while we were away: the spread of the Zika virus on American soil.
Fortunately, Colorado faces little threat of an outbreak, as researchers at Colorado State University recently proved. The mosquito that spreads the disease doesn’t thrive in our climate. There could be isolated cases involving travel to Zika-affected areas or intimate contact with people who have traveled there, but no mass spread is expected.
However, in meetings and at events throughout August, constituents raised justifiable concerns with me about Zika. They’re rightly concerned that the country is grappling with an ailment that only recently emerged on the world’s consciousness and is directly affecting Americans now.
Throughout the year, I’ve vocally supported President Obama’s request for nearly $2 billion for Zika research, prevention and treatment. Democrats throughout Congress have done the same. But the majority refused to fully fund that effort. In fact, in late summer as Congress prepared to reconvene, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said current Zika funding would run out when the fiscal year ended on September 30.
Nevertheless, there was delay in DC at this critical point in our fight against this persistent and pernicious disease, and the funding effort fell short.
Clinical trials on a possible vaccine, which have just gotten under way on a limited scale through the National Institutes for Health, can’t be carried out with no funding. In fact, NIH says it’s irresponsible to start any larger trials unless we can see them through.
There are infants in Zika-affected areas who show no signs of the virus now, but may do so as they develop. Longitudinal studies tracking their progress will be impossible without sufficient support.
And even though infection rates will drop with the arrival of cooler temperatures, they won’t go to zero. The Aedes Aegypti mosquito that carries the illness has been shown to effectively survive the winter and come back in the next year.
Earlier this summer, President Obama addressed the nation about the Zika threat once it began to spread in parts of the continental United States. He reassured us that public health experts don’t expect to see the kind of widespread outbreaks that had occurred in Brazil, Puerto Rico and elsewhere. However, he noted that “we cannot be complacent because we do expect to see more Zika cases.”
Congress must provide sufficient Zika funding immediately to state and local authorities along with federal agencies such as the CDC so they can do what’s necessary to combat Zika. And the funds shouldn’t come from other important health efforts, such as developing a vaccine for Ebola, nor be weighed down by provisions that are likely to cause needless controversy.
With the right support, we can speed the development of a vaccine, allow more people to get tested and get a prompt result, and ensure that states and communities have the resources they need to fight the mosquito that carries the virus.
Congress shouldn’t drag its feet, borrow funds from elsewhere, or do anything less than fully support this effort. We must ensure that we have the resources we need to take every step necessary to protect the American people from the Zika virus.
Diana DeGette represents the people of Colorado’s First District in the United States Congress.