Jun 5, 2018 - Health

White House withdraws plan to slash Ebola funding

Khorri Atkinson

The White House has walked back its plan to cut $252 million in leftover funding from the Obama administration to curb the Ebola virus in Africa, the AP reports.

Why it matters: There has recently been an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The White House said last week the USAID has contributed up to $8 million to combat the Ebola outbreak, including $5 million allocated from the Secretary of State.

The backdrop: The proposal to cut funding is connected to a $15 billion "rescissions" package the White House sent to Congress in early May for approval, but has since lost traction on the Hill. The administration wanted to slash funds from 38 programs, including the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the Affordable Care Act, which an official had said "are just sitting in accounts" and not being used.

The White House is also walking back its plan cut $107 million appropriated to assist communities ravaged by hurricane Sandy in 2012 to rebuild watersheds and floodplains, per the AP.

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White House withdraws plan to slash Ebola funding

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