Center for American Progress

Donate

Center for American Progress

Playing Politics With Zika
In the News

Playing Politics With Zika

Jamila Taylor writes about why a new Zika funding measure does not address women's needs.

In an underhanded move void of bipartisan compromise, Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have voted to approve $1.1 billion for Zika response efforts. The $1.1 billion price tag may seem like a good measure, considering that just weeks ago the House and Senate put forth starkly different Zika proposals – the House with $622 millionin funds shifted from other federal programs, and the Senate with $1.1 billion in new money.

However, the conference funding measure passed Thursday – which was approved in the House with a vote of 239 to 171 – completely misses the mark when it comes to addressing the needs of women, who are most susceptible to grave health outcomes in the face of Zika virus.

The above excerpt was originally published in U.S. News & World Report. Click here to view the full article.

The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here. American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.

Authors

Jamila Taylor

Senior Fellow; Director, Women’s Health and Rights