Officials said Wednesday there have been 64 confirmed cases of Zika in pregnant women in the continental U.S. One baby has been born with microcephaly in Hawaii and more cases are being investigated. Most of the $589 million would be devoted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for research on the virus and Zika-related birth defects, as well as mosquito control efforts.
Advertisement
According to the press release, Aedes Aegypti, the breed of the mosquito that is spreading Zika, has not been detected in the Magnolia State since the mid-1980s. “First, we’ve learned that sexual transmission of the virus is, actually, more common than was initially believed”.
President Barack Obama has asked for about $1.9 billion in emergency money to fight Zika, however, the request has stalled in the GOP-controlled Congress.
“Nearly two months have passed and the situation continues to grow more critical”, Donovan said.
The scientific community has been clear about the fact that they don’t want to divert Ebola funds, repeatedly arguing that the money is already spoken for and that Republicans are undercutting global public health strategy.
On the sidelines of an April 1 Zika summit to help state and local public health officials build or fine-tune their Zika action plans, health officials pleaded with Congress to approve the funds, warning that the funding gap and a raid of Ebola funds would undermine the response to both threats.
The dunk kits are a “bacteriological way to control the water and prevent larvae from developing into full-grown mosquitoes”, she said.
“More than a month ago, we called on the administration to use existing funding and legal authorities to provide the most immediate and effective response to the Zika outbreak”, the statement said.
The report on Zika and pregnancy also states: “Mosquitoes are the deadliest animals in the world because of the diseases they spread”.
The Administration is committed to taking every step necessary, as quickly as possible, to protect the American people from the Zika virus.
Health Department Director Bob Eadie and Florida Keys Mosquito Control Executive Director Michael Doyle just returned from a Centers for Disease Control conference in Atlanta on the recent Zika outbreak in Brazil, which has made its way to the United States.
“The number of Zika cases keeps growing”, Rep. Vern Buchanan (R., Fla.) said in a statement. The bulk of that money – $510 million – will come from funds set aside to deal with the Ebola crisis.
Three cases of Zika virus have been confirmed in Missouri after two men and a woman returned from travels overseas.
“Republicans are going to look back on this time that they’ve had to act on the Zika virus and deeply regret it”, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
“There are real consequences and risks for waiting”, Donovan said.
Advertisement
“We can not wait for this supplemental”. The virus continues to simmer there, with 12 cases of Ebola now occurring in Liberia and Guinea, officials said.
