U.S. House Democrat doubtful of more flu money now
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U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer on Wednesday said President Barack Obama may not get the extra $2 billion he requested to combat the H1N1 flu strain that has infected thousands of Americans.
A pending war funding bill that has already passed the House of Representatives included $2 billion while the Senate version had $1.5 billion.
Lawmakers are trying to resolve their differences but Hoyer was skeptical that more flu funds would be added for now.
“If ... that’s insufficient there’s obviously an opportunity to pass an additional supplemental” funding bill later, Hoyer told reporters. “We want to make sure that we have the funds necessary to respond to this pandemic.”
In addition to seeking the extra $2 billion, the White House also complained that neither the House nor Senate bills provide the administration enough flexibility to respond to the outbreak of the flu virus.
Cases of the new H1N1 flu virus have been found in all 50 U.S. states and tests have confirmed the virus in more than 10,000 people across the country. There have been 19 related deaths in the United States, according to U.S. officials.
New York City health officials said on Wednesday that two more people have died from the H1N1 flu there, bringing the city’s toll to seven from the new virus.
The virus, also known as the swine flu, is a mixture of swine, bird and human viruses and remains most prevalent in North America, but has infected 20,000 people in nearly 70 countries, according to the U.N. World Health Organization.
WASHINGTON (Reuters)
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