Health officials in the United States have already been preparing for the possibility of Zika transmission via blood transfusion.
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The CDC travel advice is for people who live in or have traveled to the identified area of Miami Beach after July 14 and people who live in or have traveled to the identified area of Wynwood after June 15.
“Tourism is a driving force of our economy, and this industry has the full support of our state in the fight against the Zika virus”, Scott said.
In a statement Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said pregnant women should avoid travel to the South Beach area, which has been identified as an infection zone.
Health officials say symptoms of Zika virus can include fever, headache, conjunctivitis and skin rash, along with joint and muscle pain.
None of the people infected in Miami Beach have traveled to Zika-infected regions, which suggests that mosquitos in the area of Miami Beach are infected and spreading the virus.
The state has confirmed 36 cases of local transmission of Zika, and 577 people in Florida have contracted the disease primarily through travel overseas. A few days later, in an unprecedented move, the CDC announced a travel warning, advising pregnant women not to visit that area.
Matthew DeGennaro from Florida International University says current methods of preventing Zika transmission are only proving limited success.
Zika has also been linked to a disorder known as Guillain-Barre syndrome, which can lead to nervous system problems such as weakness and paralysis.
“I’m disappointed”, said Joseph Furst, chairman of the Wynwood Business Improvement District, which represents more than 400 property owners in the neighborhood. They also heighten concerns over Zika’s spread in the continental United States.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott announced Friday that five locally transmitted cases of the Zika virus have been confirmed in an area of Miami Beach.
In a conference call with reporters on Friday, CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said there have been at least four other independent instances of mosquito-borne Zika transmission in Miami-Dade county.
The Zika virus is linked to a condition that can cause birth defects in newborns, but new research released Thursday shows the virus may also infect adult brain cells.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention referred calls to state health officials. Free Zika assessment and testing will now be offered to all pregnant women within the entire state of Florida.
He said the hotel was responding by trying to keep guests informed without alarming them.
Using the most recent available data, researchers from the Puerto Rican Health Department and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention forecast that between 5,900 and 10,300 pregnant women in Puerto Rico will become infected with Zika during the initial outbreak, which began in Puerto Rico in December 2015.
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“You knew it was going to intermingle all over the place”, he said.
