Obama pushes for Zika funding before Congress summer recess

WASHINGTON, July 1 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama urged Congress to set aside partisanship and quickly pass legislation that will fund research for a Zika virus vaccine.

Obama, speaking from the Oval Office on Friday, said scientists "feel fairly confident that we can develop a effective vaccine for Zika" but funding is stuck in partisan wrangling as Congress winds down its legislative session in two weeks.

"We're beginning right now on a whole bunch of promising pathways to get those tests done so that in fairly short order we might have a vaccine available and people won't have to worry about this. The problem is right now is that money is stuck in Congress. And we have not seen the House and the Senate come together in a sensible way to put forward the dollars that we have requested that have been budgeted to get the job done," he said.

Earlier this year, Obama requested $1.9 billion to research and develop a vaccine against the virus that has been linked to microcephaly. The virus is not particularly harmful to healthy adults, but causes the deadly brain malformation in fetuses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found seven babies have been born in the United States with Zika since June 23.

Senate Democrats on Tuesday shot down a $1.1 billion plan that was attached to a military spending bill that would have also stopped money to Planned Parenthood and allowed the Confederate flag to be displayed at veterans' cemeteries.

Republicans have objected to Obama's $1.9 billion request because there have been no other cuts recommended to offset the costs.

"We didn't draw that figure from the clouds -- it was based on the assessment of our scientists and our experts in terms of what was going to be needed for basic mosquito abatement and vaccine development, and making sure that we've got the proper diagnostic tools so that we can respond effectively to protect the health and safety of the American people," the president said Friday.