Texas Democrats Advocate for Increased Federal Emergency Funding to Combat Zika Virus in Texas

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Marc Veasey, TX-33, and Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, TX-30, led 8 members of Texas’ Democratic Congressional Delegation in a letter to Speaker Paul Ryan and Congressional Appropriators urging support for emergency supplemental funding to combat the Zika virus. The Zika virus originated in Brazil in 2015 and presents an imminent public health threat to the rest of the Western hemisphere, especially for pregnant women in the affected regions. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently confirmed Zika virus to be a cause of microcephaly and is likely a cause Guillain-Barre syndrome and other neurological disorders. There are currently more than 300 travel-associated U.S. Zika cases reported to the CDC with the first case of sexually transmitted Zika confirmed in Dallas, Texas.

The letter details the urgent efforts needed to aggressively address and prevent the spread of Zika within the United States, specifically requesting $1.8 billion in emergency federal funds to support local and state efforts to eradicate the virus. The CDC recently announced cuts to state and local Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP), including a 10% cut to the state of Texas, due to Republicans’ refusal to pass supplemental funding. Recently, Republican leadership redirected funds provided to fight Ebola for the purpose of combating the Zika virus.

“A re-shuffling of Ebola funding is not a sufficient response to the pressing threat that the Zika virus poses for vulnerable populations nationwide, especially in densely populated areas like the Dallas-Forth Metroplex,” Congressman Veasey said. “The CDC is already deploying an aggressive nationwide effort to educate the public about the threat of the Zika virus and prevent its further spread. We must ensure that local health officials have all the necessary tools to protect Texas residents and the American people as a whole.”

“At a time when we know very little about the Zika virus, we cannot simply shift funding from one emergency to the next,” said Congresswoman Johnson. “If the White House’s request for $1.8 billion in emergency supplemental funding is not approved, measures to fight Zika will be delayed or even stopped. The House leadership’s preference to take a ‘wait and see’ approach will ultimately negatively contribute to a global health crisis. We must provide emergency supplemental funding because the Zika virus is already in our communities and we must fight it.”

To view the full text of the letter, please click here.

For further questions, please contact Paloma Perez in Congressman Veasey's office, (202-225-9897, Paloma.Perez@mail.house.gov) and Cameron Trimble in Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson's office (202-225-8885, Cameron.Trimble@mail.house.gov).