Congress hits $ 8 billion emergency coronavirus funding deal

Lawmakers Wednesday unveiled more than $ 8 billion in emergency funding to combat the spread of the deadly coronavirus, as the death toll from the epidemic in the United States of the epidemic has increased to 11 people.

The House was expected to take the proposal for additional expenses for a vote later today. Senate leaders hope to vote on the plan soon after.

“Our goal would be to do it this week if we get cooperation,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, told reporters.

The $ 8.3 billion emergency plan was revealed as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 129 cases of coronavirus had been identified in the United States. California reported the first death in that state on Wednesday from the virus. The other 10 deaths were in Washington state.

The Congress spending proposal is more than three times the $ 2.5 billion the White House proposed last week to spend on the coronavirus effort.

“It shouldn’t be a matter of policy; it is about doing our job to protect the American people from a possible pandemic,” said Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala. , as he announced the deal in a press release after days of negotiations on Capitol Hill.

“We have worked together to craft an aggressive, comprehensive response that provides the resources experts say they need to tackle this crisis,” Shelby said.

“I thank my colleagues for their cooperation and I thank the President [Donald] Assetthe rush to sign this legislation and secure the funding without delay. “

A House Democratic aide told CNBC the proposal includes:

• More than $ 3 billion spent on research and development of vaccines, as well as therapeutics and diagnostics;
• $ 2.2 billion in public health funding to help prevention, preparedness and response efforts – including $ 950 million to support state and local agencies;
• Nearly $ 1 billion for medical supplies, health care readiness, community health centers and medical response capacity, and
• $ 1.25 billion to fight the coronavirus abroad.

The plan also authorizes about $ 7 billion in low-interest Small Business Administration loans to affected small businesses, the assistant told CNBC.

The House aide added that the emergency bill provided more than $ 300 million to “help ensure that when a vaccine is developed, Americans can receive it regardless of their ability to pay.” .

The issue of affordability would have been a sticking point in the negotiations.

And Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar came under fire last week after refusing to assure lawmakers that a vaccine would be affordable for everyone.

Democrats such as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., had also criticized the Trump administration’s initial emergency funding proposal as inadequate.

But Trump had said he was not averse to spending more than his administration had initially suggested.

“This is not a political advantage. We are all trying to do the right thing,” Trump said last week. “They shouldn’t be saying, ‘This is terrible. President Trump is not asking for enough money.'”

“If they want to give us more money, that’s okay; we’ll take more money,” Trump said. “Some Republicans think we should have more money too. That’s okay. We’ll take more money.”

The new strain of coronavirus, believed to have originated in Wuhan in China’s Hubei province, has shaken markets and led governments to take drastic measures as it spreads rapidly across the world.

The virus has killed more than 3,100 people and infected tens of thousands more around the world, raising fears of an imminent pandemic.

– CNBC’s Jacob Pramuk contributed to this report.