Photo credit: U.S. Department of Defense, taken by Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
The Obama Administration has requested emergency funding from Congress to address Ebola in the US and abroad. The $6.18 billion request aims to enhance comprehensive efforts to address this urgent situation. According to the White House, “to help meet both immediate and longer-term requirements, $4.64 billion is requested for immediate response and $1.54 billion is requested as a Contingency Fund to ensure that there are resources available to meet the evolving nature of the epidemic.”
The request includes $1.83 billion to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), funding to prevent, detect, and respond to the Ebola epidemic and other infectious diseases and public health emergencies. It also includes "funding for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to support immediate efforts aimed at developing technologies that are relevant to the Ebola crisis, such as providing immediate temporary immunity, including through the use of antibodies from survivors of Ebola and other infectious diseases that will help provide a stop gap until an effective vaccine is available, and developing new technologies that could shorten the vaccine development timeline from years to months.” (Source: The White House).
On Nov. 12, 2014, the Senate Appropriations Committee held a Full Committee hearing on the US government's response to the Ebola outbreak. (See the list of people testifying). The Committee evaluated the President’s request for emergency supplemental funding request. (More information).
On Nov. 13, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a congressional hearing entitled “Combating Ebola in West Africa: The International Response.” (Watch video of the hearing). Witnesses included:
- Rajiv Shah, Administrator, US Agency for International Development. Read testimony.
- Bisa Williams, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of African Affairs, US Department of State. Read testimony.
- Michael D. Lumpkin, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, US Department of Defense. Read testimony.
- Major General James Lariviere, USMC, Deputy Director for Politico-Military Affairs (Africa), Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Department of Defense.
- Major General Nadja Y. West, USA, Joint Staff Surgeon, Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. Department of Defense.
Absent from these hearings were nurses
Nurses — the front-line of defense against Ebola — at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas voiced frustration and concern over what they viewed as a lack of preparation and training at their hospital. Two healthcare providers at the hospital have been infected with the virus. Both have now been declared Ebola-free. According to the nurses' own account of the hospital's response since Thomas Duncan, the first patient with Ebola, arrived:
- "Hospital officials allowed nurses who had interacted with Mr. Duncan to then continue normal patient care duties, taking care of other patients, even though they had not had the proper personal protective equipment while caring for Mr. Duncan. Patients who may have been exposed were one day kept in strict isolation units. On the next day were ordered to be transferred out of strict isolation into areas where there were other patients, even those with lowgrade fevers who could potentially be contagious. Were protocols breached? The nurses say there were no protocols." (Read the nurses' inside account.)
The Texas hospital nurses called National Nurses United, the nation's largest nurses organization, to help share their story. NNU held a conference call with 11,500 nurses from across the country — and then sent a letter to President Obama on their behalf. They are urging the President to “invoke his executive authority” to order all US hospitals to meet the highest “uniform, national standards and protocols” in order to “safely protect patients, all healthcare workers and the public.” (Read the full letter.)
Response from Congress
Military Funding: In October, members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, the House Armed Services Committee and House Appropriations subcommittee on Defense agreed to "redirect $750 million in the Department of Defense’s Ongoing Contingency Operation (OCO) account to support the US military’s mission in the Ebola response effort" for six months, according to Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK). The Pentagon plans to send as many as 4,000 US troops to West Africa to help run testing laboratories, build treatment centers, train healthcare workers, and provide assistance with transportation and other logistics.
Travel Ban? House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) and Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) are urging the Obama Administration for a temporary travel ban from affected West African countries. (Read their letter.)
From our Hill Sources: Some Members of Congress are pointing out that a travel ban wouldn't work because there are no direct flights between the US and Liberia, Guinea or Sierra Leone. Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI) explained that
Newly Introduced Ebola Bills
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Keeping America Safe from Ebola Act (HR 5746)
(Also S 2953 in the Senate) According to the bill sponsor, “The bill would prohibit an alien who is a national of a country with a widespread Ebola virus outbreak from obtaining a visa to enter the United States.” The bill “suspends new visas and revokes current visas of an individual who is: A permanent resident or national of a country that the CDC has certified is a country for ‘widespread transmission of Ebola’, and whose last habitual residence was a country that the CDC has certified is a country for ‘widespread transmission of Ebola.’”
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S 2965
A bill to provide that members of the Armed Forces performing hazardous humanitarian services in West Africa to combat the spread of the 2014 Ebola virus outbreak shall be entitled to tax benefits in the same manner as if such services were performed in a combat zone.
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A bill to establish a Hospital Fund for the treatment of individuals with Ebola or other specified infectious diseases (S 2942)
According to the bill sponsor, the bill seeks to “to allocate funds to support the establishment of regional designated hospitals that can provide specialized care for Ebola patients in an isolated setting. Currently, there are only four hospitals with bio-containment facilities in the United States, and those locations have a total of 11 beds that can be used at any one time for Ebola patients or others with infectious diseases that require isolation.”
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Adding Ebola to the FDA Priority Review Voucher Program Act (HR 5729)
— Bipartisan — According to the bill co-sponsor, “Would add filoviruses to the list of diseases included in the Tropical Disease Priority Review Voucher Program at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The filovirus family includes all known strains of Ebola as well as the related Marburg virus.”
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Ebola Emergency Response Act (HR 5710)
— Bipartisan — To authorize the provision of assistance on an emergency basis for countries affected by or at risk of being affected by the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease to effectively address such outbreak at its source. According to the bill sponsor, "this bill lays out the steps needed for the U.S. government to effectively help fight the West African Ebola epidemic, especially in Liberia – the worst-hit of the three affected countries. This includes recruiting and training health care personnel, establishing fully functional treatment centers, conducting education campaigns among populations in affected countries and developing diagnostics, treatments and vaccines. It confirms U.S. policy in the anti-Ebola fight and provides necessary authorities for the Administration to continue or expand anticipated actions in this regard. The bill encourages U.S. collaboration with other donors to mitigate the risk of economic collapse and civil unrest in the three affected countries. Furthermore, this legislation authorizes funding of the International Disaster Assistance account at the higher FY2014 level to effectively support these anti-Ebola efforts."
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HCRes 118
— Bipartisan — Expressing the sense of Congress that health workers deserve our profound gratitude and respect for their commitments and sacrifices in addressing the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. According to the bill sponsor, the bill “expresses ‘the sense of Congress that health workers deserve our profound gratitude and respect for their commitments and sacrifices in addressing the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.’”
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Ebola Response Act (HR 5707)
To direct the President to take action to protect against the transmission of Ebola virus from individuals traveling to the United States from abroad.
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Ebola VISA Safety Act (HR 5693)
To prohibit the issuance of visas to, and the admission into the United States of, an alien during the 30-day period following the presence of the alien in Guinea, Liberia, or Sierra Leone.
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Ebola Prevention Act (HR 5692)
To restrict passports for travel to or use in certain countries.
Congressmen Kenny Marchant (R-TX) and Sam Johnson (R-TX) introduced legislation that "would ban travel and travel visas to the US for foreign nationals traveling from or through countries designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as having 'widespread and intense transmission' of Ebola."
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Stop Ebola Act (HR 5688)
Would impose special limitations on the issuance of visas to, and the admission into the United States of, aliens having certain associations with countries with widespread and intense transmissions of Ebola Virus Disease.
Congressman Dennis Ross (R-FL) introduced a similar bill that "will restrict all commercial flights from traveling to and from Ebola affected countries until the virus is declared to be contained and no longer a threat" as determined by the Director of the Center for Disease Control.
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Contain Ebola and Stop the Epidemic Act (HR 5694)
Would ban the arrival of any commercial aircraft from a country in which the Ebola virus disease has reached epidemic proportions as determined by the Director of the Center for Disease Control. Would deny a visa to any individual whose travel itinerary includes a departure from such a country.
Other Related Bills
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Accelerating Biomedical Research Act (HR 5580)
(Also S 2658 in the Senate.) "Would allow the budget cap put in place by the Budget Control Act (BCA) to be adjusted for increased investments in the National Institute of Health (NIH)," according to bill sponsors. "The bill would allow appropriations to increase NIH funding by 10 percent for the first two years and five percent each year thereafter."
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End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act (HR 4847)
–Bipartisan– "Would more broadly increase research and assistance to help developing countries contain diseases before they spread internationally," according to the bill sponsor.
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National Nursing Shortage Reform and Patient Advocacy Act (S 739)
Would "establish minimum nurse-to-patient ratios that will save lives, improve the quality of care and help to address the nursing shortage by creating a work environment that encourages nurses to remain in the hospital workforce; provide whistleblower protections to protect the right of nurses to advocate for the safety of patients and report violations of minimum standards of care; invest in nursing mentorship demonstration programs to better prepare nurses for work in a hospital setting," according to the bill sponsor.
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American Cures Act (S 2115)
(And America HEALS Act, HR 4384, in the House.) "In 2011, fifty-three percent of all funding for basic research came from the federal government. At NIH – the foremost biomedical research institute in the world – the number of research grants the agency is able to fund has declined every year for the past 10 years. The American Cures Act would reverse that trend by augmenting federal appropriations for biomedical research with a mandatory trust fund dedicated to steady growth in research conducted at NIH, CDC, DHP, and the Veterans Medical & Prosthetics Research Program. Each year, the bill would increase funding for each agency and program at a rate of GDP-indexed inflation plus 5 percent," according to the bill sponsor.
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House Ebola Resolution (HRes 701)
–Bipartisan– Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the current outbreak of Ebola in Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia is an international health crisis and is the largest and most widespread outbreak of the disease ever recorded. (A similar resolution, SRes 541, was passed by the Senate on Sept. 18th.)
Please keep in mind that highlighting a bill doesn't imply a POPVOX endorsement in any way. Rather, we're simply trying to offer one more way to stay informed of an overwhelmingly complex legislative system.
