Twenty-one legislators sent a letter to the Trump administration asking officials to appropriate $300 million to fight infectious disease outbreaks, according to Morning Consult.
Here are four notes:
1. The legislators are urging the administration to include a provision in the fiscal year 2018 spending bill on the infectious disease funding.
2. As it currently stands, the administration's budget features a fund aimed at fighting infectious diseases, but legislators worry about available funding based on President Donald Trump's proposed spending reductions.
3. In March, the White House proposed a $1.2 billion reduction to the National Institutes of Health's 2018 budget. The Office of Management and Budget did not issue a comment to Morning Consult regarding the proposed cuts.
4. The legislators' letter states, "We cannot afford to be caught flat-footed or constrained in our ability to respond and provide aid in a timely and comprehensive manner when the next public health crisis emerges."