WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Tuesday, the US House passed S. 2512, legislation that would incentivize the development, testing and distribution of a vaccine to treat the mosquito-borne Zika virus.
"I would anticipate that the president will sign the bill…but it is insufficient to ensuring that our country is prepared for a situation that could have a significant impact," Earnest said, adding that the passage of the bill was "positive" but a "meager accomplishment."
The current Zika outbreak started in Brazil in the spring of 2015 and has since spread across Latin America, with cases reported in several European countries, the Pacific and the United States. At present, there is no available vaccine against the Zika virus, which has been linked to severe brain damage and underdevelopment in newborn babies, known as microcephaly.
