DeLauro Calls for Special Session to Address the Rising Number of Zika Cases

WASHINGTON, DC (August 5, 2016) — Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) today released the following statement calling on Speaker Ryan to reconvene the House of Representatives and appropriate emergency funding to address the Zika virus and respond to the growing number of cases affecting the American people.

“The Zika virus is now a full-scale public health crisis in the U.S., with new cases being contracted every day. The U.S. government has issued an unprecedented travel warning for an American neighborhood, the virus is infecting our servicemen and women, and the government is rapidly depleting its current funding. Congress must return to Washington immediately and fund a robust response to protect the American people. There is simply no other option.

“Speaker Ryan may be preoccupied with his primary election in Wisconsin, but as Speaker of the House, he has a moral responsibility to bring Congress back into session, take up legislation, and respond to the Zika virus. Next year, when the first children with Zika-related microcephaly are born in the U.S., there will be an outcry from the American people demanding answers on why Congress did not act. Let us stop this crisis from getting that far and do everything we can to protect the American people now.”

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