Fund fight against Zika, more

For most, the threat posed by the Zika virus still seems a continent away, a concern for those in South and Central America or those planning to travel there.

The mosquito-borne virus, however, does have the potential to reach into the United States, specifically Gulf Coast states where the species of mosquito that carries the virus is known to live. A second species that also is considered a potential carrier has a wider spread that includes most of the southern U.S., much of the East Coast and parts of the Midwest.

The Zika virus is rarely fatal. Only 1 in 5 of those infected show any symptoms, which are typically mild and include a rash, fever, joint pain and reddened eyes, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. But the virus can cause birth defects when pregnant women are infected either by mosquitoes or through sexual contact with an infected person and pass the virus on to the fetus. The most common birth defect is microcephaly, which results in infants with abnormally small heads and reduced brain development.

At least two Washington state residents have been infected with the Zika virus; both contracted the virus while traveling. One was a pregnant woman, but the child showed no symptoms of infection at birth. But a child in Hawaii was born with microcephaly after her mother was infected with the Zika virus while in Brazil.

It takes little imagination to see the threat posed not only to public health but in the increased costs for prevention, care and treatment that could result from a significant outbreak of Zika in the United States.

Which is why the Obama administration earlier in the year requested up to $1.9 billion in emergency spending from Congress for programs that control the mosquitoes and fund research into potential vaccines and public education programs to limit transmission.

That initial request was met with doubts and opposition among Republicans in Congress. Rather than wait for Congress to recognize the threat, giving the disease a head start in the U.S., Obama instead diverted $589 million in existing federal funds, including $510 million that had been allocated earlier to study and combat the Ebola virus.

While Zika poses a more immediate threat, Ebola hasn’t disappeared and remains without a cure or vaccine. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, the ranking Democrat on the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, admitted the White House had little choice, but told The Washington Post earlier this month, “We’re putting ourselves at risk by taking the Ebola funding.”

Along with the $510 million diverted from combatting Ebola, another $44 million also was drained from federal grants to local and state health departments, money used to fund a broad range of public health programs. Some agencies, the Washington Post reported Monday, lost as much as 9 percent of their federal funding. And those losses come on top of earlier cuts of federal funding for state and local public health programs. The nation’s 2,800 local health departments received $863 million in federal funding in 2005, a figure that has dropped to $568 million this year, according to figures from the National Association of County and City Health Officials and cited by the Post.

Opposition, at least in the Senate, may be softening. Last week, Sen. Murray noted that Senate Republicans were now negotiating an emergency funding proposal to address Zika, while also restoring some of the funding diverted from Ebola work. On Tuesday, Murray called for the Senate to pass an emergency funding package this week.

Moving funding through the House could be more difficult. Earlier this month, the Post wrote that House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, told reporters that the government had “plenty of money,” available to fight Zika and that an additional appropriation wasn’t necessary.

Should the Senate approve emergency funding to fight the Zika virus, we hope Sen. Murray can use her past rapport with Speaker Ryan — the pair brokered the 2013 budget agreement — and secure passage in the House.

And as long as we’re advocating for ounces of prevention against Zika and Ebola, let’s recognize the value provided to public health and pocketbook by amply funding the work of state and local health departments.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

RGB version
Editorial cartoons for Monday, March 18

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Carson gets a chance to sound the horn in an Everett Fire Department engine with the help of captain Jason Brock during a surprise Make-A-Wish sendoff Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023, at Thornton A. Sullivan Park in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Editorial: Everett voters will set course for city finances

This fall and in coming years, they will be asked how to fund and support the services they use.

Devotees of TikTok, Mona Swain, center, and her sister, Rachel Swain, right, both of Atlanta, monitor voting at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn't sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app's owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Editorial: Forced sale of TikTok ignores network of problems

The removal of a Chinese company would still leave concerns for data privacy and the content on apps.

Rep. Strom Peterson, D-Edmonds, watches the State of the State speech by Gov. Jay Inslee on the second day of the legislative session at the Washington state Capitol, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Olympia, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Editorial: Legislature has its own production of ‘The Holdovers’

What state lawmakers left behind in good ideas that should get more attention and passage next year.

Comment: Measles outbreaks show importance of MMR vaccinations

The highly contagious disease requires a 95 percent vaccination rate to limit the spread of outbreaks.

Harrop: Should ‘affordable’ come at cost of quality of living?

As states push their cities to ignore zoning rules, the YIMBYs are covering for developers.

Saunders: Classified document cases show degrees of guilt

President Biden’s age might protect him, but the special prosecutor didn’t exonerate him either.

Comment: Clearing the internet of misinformation, deep fakes

With social networks’ spotty moderation record, users need to identify and call out problems they see.

Eco-Nomics: Price of gas, fossil fuels higher than you think

Greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels force unseen costs in climate disasters, illness and more.

Vote against I-2117 to keep best tool to protect climate

We voters will be offered the opportunity to repeal Washington state’s Climate… Continue reading

Lack of maternal health care raises risks of deadly sepsis

In today’s contentious climate, we often hear political debates about maternal health… Continue reading

Trump’s stance on abortion isn’t moderate; it’s dangerous

Voters deserve to know the facts and the truth about what will… Continue reading

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.