Disapproving A Rule Submitted By The Department Of Labor
Floor Speech
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Mr. RUBIO. Mr. President, a poll last month found that 4 in 10 Americans had heard little or nothing about the Zika virus, and many others were unaware that it was a risk to the United States. The likely reason for this is that the virus isn't yet being transmitted locally here in the United States.
But for all of us in Congress, this is not an excuse for inaction. Our job is to anticipate threats, not just to respond to them. We have all the information we need to know that the Zika virus is bad and is potentially about to get worse.
In fact, I believe it won't be long before virtually all of our people have heard of this virus, are concerned about it, and want to know why their leaders aren't doing more to fight it. They want to know what we are doing now. Sadly, the answer is not enough. Even though the problem has been steadily getting worse, Congress has refused to treat it with the urgency I believe it deserves.
There was a time when Zika was considered a foreign virus, but that is no longer the case. As of today, there are now 544 cases in the mainland United States, with more being confirmed almost daily. All of those so far are travel related, but there are also 832 cases locally transmitted in American territories, mostly in Puerto Rico. If the problem is there, it won't be long before it is here on the mainland.
Just this week, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which is the government's top authority on these issues, warned that mosquitoes carrying Zika will begin infecting Americans in the next ``month or so.'' Once those mosquitoes are here, they are going to reproduce. As soon as we have one case of Zika transmitted locally by a mosquito, there will be others that will follow shortly thereafter.
Just a few days ago, the Centers for Disease Control announced that 157 pregnant women in the United States and another 122 in U.S. territories have shown signs of infection from the Zika virus. This should be another wake-up call for the Congress. Knowing that there are at least 279 pregnant women in the United States with likely Zika virus infections means we also potentially have at least 279 unborn children at risk of microcephaly, and we should be doing all we can to save these human beings.
So we have a limited amount of time to brace ourselves and get a headstart on confronting this threat. Keep in mind that there is not yet a vaccine for Zika. There is no cure for the conditions and for the birth defects it causes. So for all of us as Americans but especially for all of us as elected leaders, it is long past due to take this virus seriously, because the virus is not just serious; this virus is deadly serious, and so far the Congress is failing this test.
I am proud of the work done here in the Senate to pass a funding measure. It may not have been as much as we may ultimately need, but at least at $1.1 billion, a significant amount of money is going to go toward fighting this threat.
To date, in the House, the story is different. Last week, the House passed a $622 million package. This is about a third of what was originally requested. The funds were secured by redirecting money approved to respond to the Ebola outbreak in 2014. I want to be wrong about this, but I fear that $622 million is simply not going to be enough to deal with this problem if it heads in the direction that the doctors and the experts are telling us it is headed.
So I come here on the floor of the Senate today to urge our colleagues in the House and its leadership to realize that this threat is knocking on our door and the opportunity to get out ahead of this problem is quickly slipping away. Within a month, we are likely to have a very different situation on our hands with regards to Zika. Not only have we delayed action for far too long already, but we are not expecting any action this week before Congress goes into recess next week. In other words, it is likely Congress will let at least--at least--another 2 weeks go by on this issue without any action.
So I urge the American people to make next week a tough one on those who are home from Congress who have refused to take meaningful action to confront Zika because they need to hear from you.
To any Members of Congress who don't receive pressure at home next week, you should know that you soon enough will. While only a portion of our constituents are currently concerned about Zika, that will change the moment the first case locally transmitted by a mosquito is confirmed in the mainland United States. Then we are going to have to answer to those who want to know why we didn't act, and, quite frankly, we are not going to have a satisfying answer. Waiting to act until we have a panic on our hands is not leadership.
So I encourage the House to act on the scale the American people need it to act, and I urge Congress to send a bill to the President as soon as possible regarding this matter. I hope we will properly fund this fight so we can win it.
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