By Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress and President Donald Trump on Wednesday were coalescing around emergency legislation to battle the spreading coronavirus with as much as $9 billion in new funding that would immediately be available to stem a health crisis.
Trump said the measure would appropriate about $8.5 billion – far above the $2.5 billion he initially requested last month. And House of Representatives Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, noting that the measure was still being written in Congress, said it could inject “$8 or $9 billion” into the U.S. economy.
Hoyer, who is in charge of scheduling debate of legislation on the House floor, said he was aiming for passage on Wednesday so that it could promptly be sent to the Senate for final approval, possibly this week.
The legislation is one part of a multipronged approach emerging from Washington following multiple deaths in Washington state this week from illnesses caused by the highly contagious coronavirus.
Earlier on Tuesday the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a half percentage point to a target range of 1.00% to 1.25% in an attempt to cushion the economy against the impact of the virus, which could slow consumer spending and disrupt business activities.
House Democrats said that as they get more information on the trajectory of the virus’ spread, they could act to appropriate additional funds beyond what is expected to be approved in coming days.
U.S. health officials have been ramping up the government’s ability to do more testing of patients suspected of having been infected by the new coronavirus, which was first detected in China late last year.
There also are efforts by pharmaceutical companies and Washington to speed the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus.
While details were still not available, the House’s emergency spending could contain money to help state and local governments respond to local health emergencies, ensure that vaccines become plentiful and affordable, and possibly provide interest-free loans for small businesses affected by an outbreak, Democratic lawmakers said.
A dispute over the affordability of coronavirus tests and vaccines was delaying agreement on the bill, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.
On Wednesday, the top four leaders of the House and Senate are scheduled to be briefed by Capitol officials on the response to coronavirus and the possible impact on the day-to-day operations of Congress.
A senior House Democratic aide said there have been no discussions of limiting tourism in the Capitol complex or shutting public galleries for viewing House and Senate debates.
Last Friday, House lawmakers were advised to develop alternative work arrangements staffs if the coronavirus becomes widespread.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan, Jeff Mason, Lisa Lambert and David Morgan; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jonathan Oatis)
