[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 77 (Monday, May 16, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2804-S2805]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               ZIKA VIRUS

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, over the past few months the Zika virus 
has not only spread across the Caribbean and Latin America, but it has 
become a matter of grave concern in the United States.
  Although many of the symptoms are relatively minor, Zika has been 
found to cause severe birth defects in children if the virus is 
acquired by a woman of childbearing age who is, in fact, pregnant. In 
places where the virus has been especially active, experts have found 
alarming rates of infants born with something called microcephaly--in 
other words, basically a shrunken skull. Obviously, it is a profoundly 
damaging birth defect. This is due to the mother being infected by the 
virus while pregnant.
  As the weather continues to warm, Texans are rightly concerned about 
the continued spread of the virus in our State because it is 
transmitted primarily by mosquitoes. But it is not just any mosquito 
but those known to be present in places such as Texas, Florida, 
Louisiana, and some of the warmer areas. But we don't know if that will 
always be the case or whether they will expand their range or exactly 
how this could unroll.
  In fact, cases in 11 Texas counties have already been confirmed, 
including Austin, Houston, and Dallas. One important distinction in 
these cases is that they are tied to people traveling to Latin America, 
Puerto Rico, or Central America right now. In other words, there has 
been no confirmed case, I believe, by the Centers for Disease Control 
of anybody actually being bitten by a mosquito in the United States and 
having acquired the Zika virus. But that doesn't mean that it is not 
potentially dangerous, in fact, for the reasons I have mentioned, along 
with the fact that we now have at least a couple of cases of confirmed 
sexual transmission of the Zika virus.
  Fortunately, top research and medical facilities in Texas have been 
working on ways to prevent the spread of the Zika virus and to protect 
all Americans from its symptoms. A few months ago, I visited with some 
of those at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, where 
they told me about their work in Brazil studying this virus. As the 
world leader in mosquito-borne viruses, their research is continually 
groundbreaking.
  In fact, recently the Brazilian Ministry of Health announced a 
collaboration with researchers at the University of Texas Medical 
Branch at Galveston to help them develop a Zika virus vaccine. They 
have also had experience when it comes to tackling other large-scale 
viruses. Last year UTMB was named one of the first regional Ebola 
treatment centers in the country, and UTMB researchers went on to 
develop an effective, quick-acting Ebola vaccine.
  When they stressed the urgent need for the United States to approach 
this virus in a careful and deliberate manner, I listened to what they 
were telling me. I heard a similar message when I recently visited the 
Texas Medical Center in Houston. They, too, are medical pioneers and 
are working to create a rapid test for the virus and to strengthen 
mosquito control in potential hot spots. Interestingly, this is one of 
the most important components of dealing with the Zika virus; that is, 
mosquito control.
  Indeed, we will hear more about some of the EPA regulations that are 
currently in effect which discourage or inhibit the ability of local 
public health units in places such as Houston, Galveston, and elsewhere 
to actually control the mosquito population. We will talk more about 
that later.
  But like the researchers in Galveston, these folks at the Texas 
Medical Center urge congressional action so that our country can be 
better prepared to handle this potential health crisis, instead of 
having to react after the fact. When the cases of Ebola were confirmed 
in Dallas, I remember very clearly how people felt overwhelmed by the 
fast-developing situation on the ground, so much so that they really 
did not feel that they were totally prepared ahead of time to deal with 
it. We don't want to make that mistake twice when it comes to the Zika 
virus.
  Conversations I have had with these Texas institutions, as well as 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Director of the 
Centers for Disease Control, the CDC, have underscored to me the need 
to act with urgency to avert what could become a major public health 
crisis in this country.
  Because States like mine boast a warmer climate and they are in 
closer proximity to where the mosquitoes that currently carry the Zika 
virus are located, we will likely serve on the frontline in dealing 
this summer with this response nationwide.
  Congress can't afford to sit back and do nothing. I don't hear 
anybody saying: Do nothing. I hear everybody saying we need to act 
clearly, with dispatch, and without unnecessary delay.
  But part of what we need to do is to make sure we have a plan in 
place and that we are executing a plan in a way that maximizes the 
effectiveness in combatting not only the mosquitoes that carry this 
virus but also the virus itself. We have to make sure our public health 
officials on the frontline of research and prevention have the 
resources they need to get the job done too.
  Fortunately, tomorrow, the Senate will vote on several pieces of 
legislation designed to provide additional Federal funding so public 
officials can handle this impending crisis head on.
  The first proposal is from the President of the United States. 
President Obama has made a spending request of nearly $2 billion that 
isn't paid for. It is emergency funding, meaning that the funding would 
be deficit-increasing and debt-increasing. Also, the President's 
proposal to spend $2 billion comes without very much in the way of a 
plan about how the administration would use the money. I guess they are 
asking us to trust them, but, frankly, I think we have a greater 
responsibility to make sure that the money will be put to good use and 
that we have appropriated an adequate amount of money--but not more 
money than is necessary--to deal with this potential crisis.
  The second piece of legislation we will vote on is a compromise 
package that was negotiated between the chairman and the ranking member 
of the Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee in 
a bipartisan and commonsense way. I congratulate Senator Blunt and 
Senator Murray for working through this in an orderly sort of process, 
and I commend them on reaching an agreement.
  Their compromise bill is basically for $1.1 billion. In other words, 
it is not the $1.9 billion or $2 billion that the President requested. 
They thought the $1.1 billion was a more accurate and justifiable 
number.
  Unfortunately, the legislation that has been negotiated between the 
chairman and the ranking member of the Labor, Health and Human Services 
Appropriations Subcommittee is not paid for either. What this would 
essentially do is borrow from our children and grandchildren to meet 
the present exigencies of this crisis.

  The good news is we have a third option, which I want to talk about 
briefly. It is a third piece of legislation that I have introduced and 
which is nearly identical to the Blunt-Murray proposal, the 
Appropriations subcommittee proposal. It would also provide a 
compromise of $1.1 billion in Federal funding targeted toward health 
care professionals across the country.
  But my bill has a key distinction. It is fully paid for. You might 
ask: Where does that money come from?
  When the Affordable Care Act--or ObamaCare, as it has come to be

[[Page S2805]]

known--was passed, it included a provision for the Prevention and 
Public Health Fund. This, again, was part of the Affordable Care Act. 
The purpose that was stated in the legislation was ``to provide for 
expanded and sustained national investment in prevention and public 
health programs.'' In other words, it could have been tailor-made to 
deal with this potential Zika crisis.
  What I would propose is that we deal with the problem without delay. 
We appropriate the right amount of money, which both Democrats and 
Republicans--at least in the Appropriations Committee--have agreed is 
$1.1 billion, but that we take available funds and funds that will be 
available under the Prevention and Public Health Fund, and we pay for 
it.
  You wouldn't think that would be particularly revolutionary or novel 
around here, but unfortunately I think too often what we do is we act 
in an emergency or to avert an emergency and we don't follow through 
and do it in a fiscally responsible sort of way.
  The fact of the matter is we do need to address the Zika virus. There 
is no doubt about that. There is no difference among us in this Chamber 
or in Congress about the need to deal with that. As a matter of fact, 
the House of Representatives has proposed a version of their response 
today, I believe. But we need to do this responsibly.
  There is no reason why we have to put our country deeper in debt to 
protect ourselves against this virus. We don't have an endless supply 
of money. The Federal Treasury can't just keep printing money, and we 
can't just keep imposing on our children and grandchildren the 
responsibilities to pay the money back that we continue to borrow, 
particularly when we have a fund available to offset this expenditure.
  As the Presiding Officer well knows, our growing debt in and of 
itself is a threat to our country's future and our way of life. The 
Presiding Officer and I have listened to the Senator from Georgia, Mr. 
Perdue, talk about what impact our debt has on our ability not only to 
withstand another financial crisis, such as we had in 2008, but simply 
to fund such essential functions of the Federal Government like 
national defense.
  Particularly, as the interest rates are going up, more and more money 
is going to be paid to our bond holders, such as China and others, 
instead of paying for essential functions of the government, like 
national defense or safety net programs that we all agree are 
worthwhile.
  If we can deal with this potential crisis and do so in a fiscally 
responsible way without growing the debt, then we ought to be able to 
do that. This should be a no-brainer.
  We should take this opportunity tomorrow to give our public health 
officials and local officials back home the resources they need to 
protect our constituents--the American people--against the spread of 
the Zika virus, but we ought to do so without adding to our mounting 
debt.
  Fortunately, this legislation also includes a provision that would 
waive provisions of the Clean Water Act--I have referred to those a 
little earlier--and permit State and local officials to spray to 
protect against mosquitoes year around. Unfortunately, this particular 
legislation, the Clean Water Act, has provisions in it that essentially 
tie the hands of public health officials when it comes to mosquito 
eradication, which is one of the essential components of a strategy to 
defeat this potential crisis.
  We all agree that the Zika virus is a real threat with real public 
health consequences. It has already impacted a generation in Brazil and 
other Latin American countries. We are told it is apparently rampant in 
Puerto Rico and Haiti, and there is no question it is coming our way. 
With the summer months ahead of us, the potential for this virus to 
spread to the United States is a major concern that we ought to address 
with dispatch. We have to give those on the ground the tools and 
support they need to address this threat, but we have to do so in a 
responsible way.
  I urge our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the 
legislation which funds the Zika prevention program at $1.1 billion but 
pays for it out of the Prevention and Public Health Fund, as apparently 
this fund was created to do--to ``provide for expanded and sustained 
national investment in prevention and public health programs.''
  I urge my colleagues on both sides to support this legislation when 
we have a chance to vote tomorrow. The time to act is now.
  I yield the floor.
  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. PORTMAN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Fischer). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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