The declaration is a tool that provides support to the government of Puerto Rico to address the outbreak on the island and underscores the public health risk of Zika, particularly to pregnant women and women of childbearing age. More than 100 pregnant women infected with Zika in Puerto Rico who have given birth have had healthy babies, officials said.
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The announcement came hours after Puerto Rico reported 1,914 new cases in the past week, for a total of 10,690 since the first one was reported in December.
“This administration is committed to meeting the Zika outbreak in Puerto Rico with the necessary urgency”, Secretary Sylvia Burwell said in a department statement.
The virus can cause microcephaly, a birth defect marked by abnormally small head size and developmental problems in babies.
“We really knew it was a matter of time before someone went somewhere and contracted the virus”, says Matt Smith, director of Sarasota County Mosquito Management.
Zika was first detected previous year in Brazil, where it has taken its heaviest toll so far, and has spread rapidly through the Americas. It is meant to promote an immune response that would protect against the mosquito-borne virus that can cause devastating birth defects, according to a statement from the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
Among U.S. states and territories, Puerto Rico is expected to see the worst of the Zika outbreak due to its tropical climate and a lack of infrastructure for mosquito control. Florida has reported homegrown Zika transmission by mosquitoes.
Florida health officials say they’re investigating a new Zika case outside a Miami neighborhood where mosquitoes have spread the virus to over two dozen people.
As of Thursday, there have been 205 confirmed cases of travel-related Zika infections in Canada and two cases of sexual transmission.
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The emergency was declared one day after the US surgeon general visited Puerto Rico and said he expected 25 percent of Puerto Rico’s almost 3.5 million people will be infected with Zika by year’s end. Many infected people will not experience any symptoms.
