On September 6, Congress again failed to approve a federal response to the Zika virus after Republicans included a legislative “poison pill” created to exclude Planned Parenthood from funding – echoing the false right-wing media argument that the reproductive health organization is not an essential health care provider.
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Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who is seeking re-election with Zika as a main campaign issue, said the Senate should again approve its original Zika bill.
Does defunding Planned Parenthood and defending confederate flag waving have anything to do with funds necessary to protect pregnant women and children from Zika?
The bill also contained funding for military construction, the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs.
But House Republicans are still mulling over their options to punish the Democrats. “But instead of being proactive and prepared for what was about to hit our shores, Republicans in congress chose to poison our response with right wing, ideological policy writers hat prevented us from appropriately addressing this issue”.
The bogus assertion that Planned Parenthood is inessential has been a right-wing media staple, frequently adopted by anti-choice legislators attempting to defund the organization. In Iowa, McGuire said, there have been 15 reported Zika cases. The failure to pass the bill stemmed from Planned Parenthood provisions. That would mean Planned Parenthood’s two clinics in Puerto Rico – where the virus has infected thousands – aren’t eligible.
Republicans say Democrats are stalling the bill, which is kind of true.
Since then, Democrats have hammered the GOP for “playing politics” and stalling the nation’s Zika response.
It’s possible the Senate could leave the House with a must-pass resolution without that provision, if Senate Republicans drop it to bring Senate Democrats on board.
Vice President Joe Biden said much of the same on the steps of Capitol Hill.
“It is a genuine health threat”.
Democrats, he said, want to overlook the fact a majority of both chambers of Congress have agreed on significant Zika funding. “But not for national emergencies”.
“It is disappointing to watch Iowa’s GOP senators vote for a bill that would only partially fund the fight against the Zika virus and would punish women in Zika-affected areas by limiting their access to health services”, she said. Serious birth defects typically follow in the virus’s wake, and so far 16 babies have been born in the US with Zika-caused problems.
Ryan has vowed to find a solution to deliver money to help fight the spread of Zika this month.
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House Speaker Paul Ryan, however, knows the blame is all the Democrats. “I anticipate by the end of this month something will get done, but the House has already done its job, and we’ll see if the Senate can get its act together”.
