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                          US Weighs More Zika Funding

   by Ken Bredemeier

   The U.S. Congress is set this week to consider several measures to fund
   research into a vaccine for the deadly Zika mosquito virus and a plan
   to control mosquitoes that spread the disease.

   The question remains, however, how much lawmakers are willing to spend
   to curb the virus that can cause the birth defect microcephaly, which
   leaves babies with small heads and deformed brains, and impairs growth.

   Three months ago, President Barack Obama proposed a $1.9 billion plan
   to develop a vaccine, control the mosquitoes and help other countries
   fight the virus. But his Republican opponents in Congress said that was
   too costly and balked at approving it.

   ''Republicans in the House of Representatives offered a $622 million
   proposal Monday for vaccine development and international mosquito
   control.

   The Senate is planning to start voting Tuesday on Obama's plan, a
   competing Republican alternative and a compromise measure costing $1.1
   billion.

   Even if these measures clear the two chambers, the outlines for a final
   accord are not clear.

   To date, there have been more than 500 cases of Zika contamination in
   the United States, all of which so far have been associated with
   overseas travel. Last week, Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory in the
   Caribbean Sea, reported its first case of Zika-borne microcephaly.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/us-weighs-more-zika-funding/3332685.h
   tml

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/us-weighs-more-zika-funding/3332685.html