[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 57 (Thursday, April 14, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2088-S2090]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               ZIKA VIRUS

  Mr. RUBIO. Madam President, I am here today to talk about the Zika 
virus, which we have been hearing a lot about in the news lately. It is 
a virus that first began to appear--well, obviously it has been around 
for a long time, but we began to see it in the news lately with regard 
to its implications in Brazil and Latin America. But it has now found 
its way here to the United States, and there has been a lot of 
discussion about it.
  As the Presiding Officer knows, the President has requested $1.9 
billion to deal with it. There are a lot of different things we need to 
do to address it. There has been a little bit of a squabble in the 
Congress about whether we should be spending that much money on it.
  So one of the things I argued for--and it has happened--is that we 
should take some of the money that was set aside for Ebola when the 
Ebola crisis was going on--it was about $500 million of that that had 
been unspent. I argued that before we go to the $1.9 billion, there was 
$500 million immediately available. Let's assign that to be used. The 
President has agreed to do that. But there is still a shortfall on this 
issue. It does need to be addressed. I hope we can find a way to 
address it.
  Obviously my political differences with the policies of the White 
House are well known and established, but this is an issue where I 
believe and I hope they will be supportive of this request.

[[Page S2089]]

  To be abundantly clear, it is not just about throwing money at it. We 
have to make sure the money is being spent on the right things. This is 
not just saying ``Here is $1.9 billion'' and throwing the money at 
Zika; you want to make sure, No. 1, it is all being spent on dealing 
with the virus. Oftentimes in this place, when money is assigned for a 
catastrophe or a disaster or anything like this, a breakout of a 
disease, suddenly you see all kinds of other ideas and programs 
attached to it that have nothing to do with the primary reason the 
money is being spent. So we want to make sure, No. 1, that if there is 
$1.9 billion that is going to be spent on this, that all of it is spent 
on this and not on some other thing.
  The second is, we want to make sure the money is being spent on the 
right things. What are the right things? Well, we have discussed those 
over the last few days. One of the most important things that need to 
happen long term is the money necessary for basic research to 
incentivize the vaccine. There is a belief that they can pretty quickly 
get to a vaccine that will protect people from this. That is important.
  I think there needs to be thought put into the testing. Today, 
testing for the Zika virus is less than reliable. There is not a 
commercially available test. For example, in Florida, if you want to be 
tested for Zika, it has to be through the State department of health. 
You cannot go down to Quest Laboratory or one of the providers of lab 
tests and get it. There is not a commercially available test. So that 
has to be improved as well.
  Those are the sorts of things I hope the money will be geared 
towards. This is why it is so important. I don't want us to take our 
eyes off of this because if this issue really takes off on us here in 
the United States, we don't want to say that we knew it was happening 
but we ignored it and did nothing about it.
  On Monday of this week, there was a Reuter's report in which U.S. 
officials warned that the Zika virus is ``scarier'' than they initially 
thought. The Zika virus is now present in about 30 States. And by the 
way, there are hundreds of thousands of infections that could appear in 
the territory of Puerto Rico.
  Here is a quote from the Deputy Director of the U.S. Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention:

       Everything we look at with this virus seems to be a bit 
     scarier than we initially thought. And so while we absolutely 
     hope we don't see widespread local transmission in the 
     Continental United States, we need the States to be ready for 
     that.

  As of now, from my understanding, there has only been one case of 
transmission in the continental United States. That happens to be in 
Polk County, FL. But there are dozens in the territory of Puerto Rico. 
So this is deeply concerning.
  The other thing they found is that the mosquito species that 
primarily transmits the virus is present in about 30 States rather than 
12, as previously thought. So that, too, indicates that this could be a 
very serious issue that could find itself in places outside of the 
tropical climates to which we once thought it was limited.
  On Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control--this was last 
Wednesday--the CDC said that it is now clear that Zika definitely 
causes severe birth defects. Confirming the worst fears of many 
pregnant women in the United States and Latin America, U.S. health 
officials said Wednesday that there is no longer any doubt that the 
Zika virus causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads and 
other severe brain defects.
  This is something that now--looking at what has happened in Brazil 
and other parts of the country, there is now real concern about what 
this can mean for pregnant women and the ability to transmit that to 
their unborn child. The effects of it are devastating.
  Initially it was thought that the Zika virus is very dangerous if you 
contract it in the first trimester but that after that the risk is no 
longer as grave. But on Thursday of this week, we got the news--this 
was reported in USA TODAY--that the Zika virus may, in fact, affect 
babies even in the later stages of pregnancy. The Zika virus may pose a 
threat to women and their fetuses even in the later stages of 
pregnancy, according to a study published online Wednesday in the BMG, 
which was formerly known as the British Medical Journal.
  Doctors initially suspected that Zika infections, which are largely 
spread by mosquitoes, would be most harmful to fetuses in the first 
trimester or the first 3 months of a 9-month pregnancy. In this study, 
however, 23 percent of the mothers of babies with microcephaly were 
infected with Zika in the second trimester. Two mothers were infected 
in the sixth month of pregnancy. None were infected in the third 
trimester.
  The babies in the study had problems that went far beyond simply 
small heads. The brain damage seen in the study was ``extremely severe, 
indicating a poor prognosis,'' according to the study.
  The authors of the report have now expanded the study to a total of 
130 babies with microcephaly. Several infants have had epileptic 
seizures within 3 to 5 months after birth. The extent of the brain 
damage seen in the babies in the study, which was captured in MRI 
images, was ``stunning,'' according to James Bale, Jr., a professor of 
pediatric neurology at the University of Utah School of Medicine. This 
is the quote: ``This is a really remarkable degree of damage.'' Babies 
with this condition have severe microcephaly, extra scalp skin, 
intellectual disabilities, and prominent occipital bone, which is 
located at the back of the head, according to the CDC.
  By the way, these fetal brain disruptions we have talked about are 
normally extremely rare. A 2001 review in a medical journal identified 
only 20 cases, according to the CDC. So this is something we are 
looking at that does not normally happen as a normal risk, but it is 
clearly being exacerbated by the Zika virus. In fact, in MRI images 
published by the BMG study, one baby appears to have a very small, even 
nonexistent brain. Judging by the damage on the MRI, the baby in that 
image is likely to have severe cognitive impairment and may be unable 
to learn to walk or talk.
  So that is why the same day I sent a letter to the Centers for 
Disease Control. I sent a letter to them regarding the Zika testing 
backlog.
  On April 8, I hosted a briefing in Miami--a week ago tomorrow. Some 
State health departments, local health departments, and county 
government officials were represented. I included health officers from 
Puerto Rico. I publicly, as I said at the time, offered my support for 
the President's emergency supplemental funding request.
  While I heard there were many obstacles that we face in fighting 
Zika, one aspect I heard about repeatedly was the distressing length of 
time it takes for diagnostic tests to be completed. I have subsequently 
seen media reports of pregnant women who have waited up to a month for 
the CDC to complete their diagnostic tests for the Zika virus while 
fearful mothers anxiously waited to know their child's fate.

  Of course, we are still waiting for the supplemental request to be 
passed, and I hope we can do that quickly. There really is no reason to 
wait on this.
  But until Congress approves the request, I urge the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention to use whatever steps are necessary to 
dedicate currently available resources to clearing its current backlog 
of Zika diagnostic tests and to prioritize these tests for women who 
are pregnant.
  I believe these essential steps will help us not only to ease 
mothers' minds who test negative for the virus but also to provide 
critical care for a child whose mother tests positive for the Zika 
virus. We know that screening for microcephaly should happen early and 
often, and receiving the results of a diagnostic test is the first step 
in that process. The CDC should have the capability to provide those 
services immediately to those who are waiting.
  Ultimately, it is my hope that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 
will approve a commercial Zika diagnostic test in the near future so 
that these tests are more broadly available.
  One more thing that was reported on Wednesday was that the House GOP 
is readying a Zika funding plan. House leaders are working on approving 
more funding by the end of this year. Once again, I encourage them to 
do so in light of the circumstances we now face.
  I am not saying this is going to be an outbreak of crisis 
proportions, but I am saying that for a family that is potentially 
impacted by this, it will be a crisis. I am saying that it is important 
for

[[Page S2090]]

these testing kits to be available--not only for the expectant mothers 
or potentially pregnant but also for men because, as we know, the Zika 
virus can also be transmitted sexually, as it was in the transmission 
that occurred in Polk County, FL.
  Beyond it, I hope that in this funding request we don't wait until 
the end of the year. The summer months are coming, and these are the 
months where the spread of these mosquitoes--the two strains of the two 
types of species of mosquitoes that carry the virus--are going to be 
prevalent in many parts of the country. It is the time of year when 
many people find themselves outdoors exposed to these mosquitoes.
  I hope the funding request can be in place and that we don't wait 
until the end of the year to deal with this. It shouldn't take this 
long. Look, I believe in limited government, but I do believe one of 
the obligations of a limited Federal Government is to protect our 
people from dangers, whether they be foreign enemies or the risk of 
disease outbreak.
  I hope we will move forward on this endeavor because it is important. 
It is a proper function of government. We shouldn't be sitting here 6 
months from now regretting that we didn't act sooner. I hope we will 
move promptly and quickly both in the House and then in the Senate to 
address this issue.
  I also wish to say that I don't want to forget about Puerto Rico. 
Oftentimes people forget that Puerto Rico is the United States. The 
people who live there are U.S. citizens.
  There is already a severe outbreak when it comes to Puerto Rico. They 
are already facing this crisis. So it is important. If this were one of 
the 50 States, they would have a Senator on the floor right now, maybe 
two, arguing on behalf of them. Obviously, Puerto Rico doesn't have a 
Senator elected from the island.
  I stand here today on their behalf to argue that this is an important 
issue that needs to be addressed for the sake of our country, but most 
immediately for the sake of the territory of Puerto Rico. I hope we 
will move quickly to confront this issue and to solve it.
  I close by saying one more thing. While government has an important 
role to play, ultimately we have a responsibility. If you are traveling 
to parts of this world where you might be exposed to the virus, you 
have an obligation to get tested to ensure that you are not going to be 
transmitting this to your partner.
  As I argued last week at my press conference, if you are going to be 
outdoors, you have an obligation to use mosquito repellant to protect 
yourself and your family from being exposed to this, just the same way 
you would wear sunscreen. It is important for us more this summer than 
any other.
  It is not only Zika that mosquitoes transmit. They transmit all kinds 
of other very serious illnesses. There is a level of personal 
responsibility here. We talked about people not allowing bodies of 
water, whether it is undrained pools or puddles of water in your 
backyard. These mosquitoes can grow in water containers as small as the 
cap of a bottle of water. They don't need a lot of water in order to 
reproduce and grow. So there are things we need to do in our own lives 
to take personal responsibility for dealing with the Zika virus.
  But there is a proper role for government, and I hope we will play 
it. We have an obligation to hold the government responsible to ensure 
that the money that is appropriated is just being spent on Zika and is 
being spent appropriately on things that work. We should be working 
with our local and State partners to ensure that we are funding the 
programs that work and need to be funded. But I think we need to get it 
done. I hope we can get it done here rather quickly because the summer 
is upon us. I don't think we want to be halfway through the summer and 
wake up to the news that hundreds and hundreds of Americans in multiple 
States have been infected and we did nothing. We will have to explain 
that to our constituents, and I am not sure we are going to have a good 
explanation if we don't have it.
  With that, I yield the floor.
  Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________