In an attempt to inspire U.S. legislators to finally pass a bill allocating emergency funding to combat the spread of Zika, Florida congressmen David Jolly (R) took to the floor of the House with approximately 100 Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in tow, according to The Washington Post.
On Tuesday, the House and the Senate resumed session after a seven week recess. The House passed a bill to provide $1.1 billion in emergency funds to combat the spread of Zika. Democrats in the Senate promptly blocked the bill due to a GOP provision that would bar funding from supporting Planned Parenthood in the distribution of contraception to impede the sexual transmission of Zika.
"Can you imagine, colleagues, the fear and anxiety in this chamber if these hundred mosquitoes were outside this jar, not inside this jar?" Rep. Jolly asked, according to the Post. "Members of Congress would run down the hall to the physician's office to be tested. They would spray themselves before coming down here. This is the fear of Floridians, right here."
According to the Post, the mosquitoes Rep. Jolly brought to the floor were not carrying the Zika virus.
As of Aug. 25, there have been 624 pregnant women in the U.S. with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection. Additionally, 16 babies have been born in the states with Zika-related birth defects. Currently, Florida — Rep. Jolly's state — is the only state in the U.S. experiencing local Zika transmission.
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