But he said additional support will be needed to help expand mosquito-control capabilities and develop a Zika vaccine and diagnostics, among other priorities.
Advertisement
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says 1,403 travel-associated cases of Zika have been reported across the US; 270 in Florida alone.
More than 1,300 Zika infections have been reported in the US, none involving bites from local mosquitoes; 14 of these were sexually transmitted, and one lab worker was infected by a needle stick.
It will just be a matter of waiting for results and getting a large enough sample of local potential carriers. “We frequent playgrounds, so we’re out and about everyday”, Waldmann said, describing the active routine she has with her 2-year-old daughter Madeline.
They said Tuesday, July 19, 2016, lab tests confirm a person in the Miami area is infected with the Zika virus, and there may not be any connection to someone traveling outside the country.
Brazilian researchers said Thursday they have found Zika in Culex mosquitoes in the northeastern city of Recife in what could prove to be an important discovery.
“We continue to investigate and have not ruled out travel or sexual transmission at this time”, a department spokesperson told NBC News.
Zika infection during pregnancy has been linked to severe birth defects.
Hotez was skeptical that Culex mosquitoes are going to start spreading Zika in a significant way.
Reik said it hasn’t been decided yet what percentage of blood donations will be screened; four hospitals have requested Zika-screened blood.
Florida’s mosquito control districts can respond to Zika infections for now, but doing so burns up budgets for longer-term threats.
Seminole County has had nine cases of travel-related Zika, Volusia County three cases and Lake County one reported case.
Zika is a concern because if a pregnant woman is infected, she faces a higher risk of bearing a child with microcephaly, in which the skull and brain are malformed and smaller than normal.
The federal government has announced funding for the states of Pennsylvania and NY to help combat the Zika Virus.
While there have been a handful of travel-related infections in the United States, there have not been any confirmed “locally-acquired mosquito-borne cases” in the country, according to the Center for Disease Control.
But the CDC says it’s very likely that some travelers will be bitten by mosquitoes while still actively infected and that this could cause local Zika outbreaks.
This individual has not traveled to an area where the virus is circulating.
Advertisement
“You have to test people”, Marty said.
