President Obama on Tuesday signed into law a bill aimed at encouraging pharmaceutical companies to help combat the Zika virus and develop vaccines.
The legislation puts the Zika virus--a mosquito-borne illness that is spreading throughout South and Central America--to the Food and Drug Administration's priority review voucher program in order to jump-start the development of treatments for tropical diseases, CBS News reports.
In addition to this legislation, Mr. Obama's administration has been pushing for $1.9 billion in emergency funding for efforts to combat Zika, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed last week can cause birth defects.
Source: CBS News