ONEIDA COUNTY – With recent reports of the Zika Virus in nearby Oneida County, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer is pushing feds to fund medical research that may ultimately lead to a vaccine for the debilitating virus.

The Senator is calling for $1.9 billion in emergency funding from Congress to fight the epidemic. According to him, the funding would be a big win both for combating the virus, and for SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse where research for an anti-Zika vaccine has already started.