A 30-year-old Cleveland woman who had traveled to Haiti has been confirmed as having the virus, the state health department said Tuesday morning.
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Zika virus is primarily transmitted through a mosquito bite, and there is no indication that it can spread from person to person through casual contact.
Two female Pennsylvania residents tested positive for the Zika virus, however they are mild cases and the public is not as risk, Pennsylvania health authorities said on Tuesday.
Many people infected with the virus don’t get sick.
She said pregnant women should avoid travel to those areas because the virus has been linked to birth defects. In fact, in most people it causes no symptoms at all.
“We’re committed to protecting the health of Pennsylvanians and we will be sharing with you what our plans are”, Murphy said.
The Erie County Health Department is planning to take part, and already has run its own exercise, said Pete Schade, Erie County’s health commissioner.
Those who are infected are instructed not to travel to north Queensland, where the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in that area could bite them and begin transmitting the virus locally.
Travelers to the United States from countries where mosquitoes carry the virus could bring the disease here, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a travel alert for people traveling to regions and countries where Zika virus transmission is ongoing: Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and Puerto Rico.
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Another type of mosquito found in OH may potentially transmit Zika virus, although it has not yet been implicated in the transmission of human cases. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, announced he’s introduced a bipartisan bill to encourage the development of a vaccine and treatments for the Zika virus.
