Congressional dysfunction likely to stall Zika funding bill

The House passed a bill last month to provide $622 million in funding, drawing a veto threat from the White House, which called it woefully inadequate.

Asked about next steps, Schumer said Republicans need “to get rid of this cynical sham bill and start negotiating with us”.

Democrats said the Republican proposals were too weak. “We’re willing to compromise”.

The bills themselves are so very modest: Background checks of private gun sales, bringing them into line with what every licensed firearms dealer in the country already does.

The prospect of gridlock prompted Scott last week to announce he would commit $26.2 million in state funds for Zika preparedness, prevention and response including: mosquito surveillance and abatement, training for mosquito control technicians, enhanced laboratory capacity, and purchase of Zika prevention kits.

Lawmakers in both parties could face blowback at home for failing to craft a consensus measure.

The vote comes just as the state of Florida confirmed Tuesday morning its first case of microcephaly, a birth defect linked to the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Almost 820 Americans have acquired Zika through travel, however, with 11 contracting it through sexual contact, according to the CDC.

Democrats blamed Republicans for using the bill to “whack” the organization, while Republicans say the bill includes plenty of funding, allocated in the most effective way, to target those most affected by the Zika virus, including those seeking contraceptive services.

The GOP bill would pay for the Zika response with $750 million in cuts elsewhere, including taking more than $100 million from the Ebola response, and more than $500 million from an Affordable Care Act fund.

Democrats oppose a provision easing Environmental Protection Agency regulations but are especially frustrated by a measure that prevents funding for Planned Parenthood.

Ryan, on the other hand, said, “We are not going to allow stunts like this to stop us from carrying out the people’s business”.

Filed hours before the shooting that left 14 dead in San Bernardino, California, Ehrlich’s bill (H 3914) was sent to a study order at March’s bill-reporting deadline, often a death knell for legislation. “We have no choice”.

“There is no reason Democrats should reverse course now and block funding for Zika control in the midst of mosquito season”, McConnell said, noting the final legislation contains the same amount of funding as an earlier bipartisan Senate agreement. “Pregnant women all across America are looking at this with dismay – utter dismay – as we sit here in a partisan gridlock manufactured by the other side over issues that (are) pretty hard for the general public to understand”.

The legislation’s limits on funding for birth control services was “a backdoor way of restricting care from women’s health providers like Planned Parenthood and family planning centers that would have serious consequences for women’s health”, Democratic leadership said, according to Roll Call. “If we stay on schedule, a vaccine for Zika could be available as soon as 2018”, Senator Alexander said.

“We stand ready to work cooperatively with you to address this national public health emergency”, they wrote.

The lawmakers stopped short of saying they would resume their sit-in when the House returns from its July 4 recess next week.

So-called “pro forma” sessions, which are done to block recess actions by the president, are rarely attended by more than the single House member who gavels in the body and gavels it out after a prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and perhaps a piece of administrative housekeeping or two.