DeLauro Statement on U.S. Response to Wuhan Coronavirus

WASHINGTON, DC – (January 27, 2020) Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, today released the following statement on the United States' response to the deadly Wuhan coronavirus. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), five people have tested positive in the United States. All five individuals recently returned from traveling in Wuhan. In addition, the Chinese government has reported at least 81 deaths in China. DeLauro's fiscal year 2020 funding bill provided the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with $85 million for the Infectious Disease Rapid Response Reserve Fund.

"The latest data on the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus in China and the United States is troubling. Given China's disappointing record on food and medicine safety, our federal government must be proactive in combatting this virus and transparent in providing available information in real-time. The CDC has more than $100 million in a rapid response fund due to my Appropriations Subcommittee's funding bill, and I am committed to working with our government's public health officials to provide additional resources if necessary. I will also be reintroducing the Public Health Emergency Fund Act, which would provide $5 billion to our woefully underfunded public health emergency fund."

"At the moment, prominent medical experts believe influenza poses a far greater risk to people across the United States than the coronavirus. In Connecticut, the Department of Public Health has already recorded 20 influenza-associated deaths this season. It is not too late for you or your family members to get a flu shot. And in Congress I will continue working to provide funding for a universal flu vaccine."

DeLauro's fiscal year 2020 funding bill included $200 million to develop a universal flu vaccine.