[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1258]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      ZIKA RESPONSE AND SAFETY ACT

  (Mr. STEWART asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STEWART. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the World Health Organization 
declared the Zika virus outbreak a global public health emergency.
  The virus is particularly dangerous to pregnant women as it has been 
linked to serious physical and neurological defects in their unborn 
children. As the father of six children, I understand how frightening 
this could be.
  Experts fear the virus will spread more widely to the United States, 
especially with the Olympic Games in Brazil on the horizon. That is why 
I have introduced the Zika Response and Safety Act, to ensure that key 
agencies have the resources necessary to combat this growing threat.
  In 2014, Congress allocated more than $2 billion to fight Ebola. Much 
of that money is still unspent. I would like to make some of that 
funding available to be used to combat the Zika virus.
  This virus is a global health threat that requires our immediate 
attention. I urge my colleagues to support the Zika Response and Safety 
Act so that we can provide the necessary resources to understand and to 
prevent the harmful effects from Zika.

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