Senate Democrats blocked the latest version of a federal spending bill that would have provided $1.1 billion to fight the spread of the Zika virus after House Republicans added in outside legislation that included policy changes related to environmental concerns and funding cuts on contraception.
The House’s version of the Zika bill—passed during a Democratic sit-in calling for a gun control vote that also occurred before members left for a week-long holiday break—also called for the reallocation of $750 million from other health departments to reach the total of $1.1 billion in Zika funding.
President Obama requested $1.9 billion to combat the Zika virus back in February. Ever since a sharp partisan divide between the Senate and House has led to revised legislation, so convoluted that there is now a question as to whether any sort of agreement will be made before peak mosquito season.
More information on the Zika bill is available via The New York Times. Next on the Senate agenda is a Puerto Rico debt relief bill to help alleviate a portion of the Caribbean Island’s economic woes.
