Obama would veto Republican-backed Zika funding bill: White House

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE The White House on Thursday threatened to veto a Republican-backed bill that would provide $1.1 billion to fight the Zika virus, saying the legislation does not provide adequate funding for the crisis and would limit birth control access for women.

“This is a bill that would steal money from other critically important public health priorities, including those funded by Affordable Care Act and those funded by our effort to combat ebola,” White House spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters during a briefing.

President Barack Obama had asked Congress for $1.9 billion to respond to the Zika virus.

(Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)