The Obama administration is asking Congress for $1.8 billion to prepare for and fight any outbreaks of the Zika virus in the United States, particularly in the South.
In the request, the Administration acknowledges that as the weather warms and mosquito populations grow, it's only a matter of time before mosquito-borne Zika hits the continental U.S.
"[W]e must be fully prepared to mitigate and quickly address local transmission within the continental U.S., particularly in the Southern United States," the White House said in a statement Monday.
The proposed appropriation would be split among several agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The money would support a host of prevention and rapid response efforts, among them: expanding mosquito control programs; accelerating vaccine research and testing; education for health care providers, pregnant women and their partners; and helping Zika-affected countries combat mosquitoes and control transmission. The administration also wants to expand the CDC Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System to make sure birth defect registries across the country can quickly detect Zika-related risks.
The virus, which is primarily transmitted by two types of mosquitoes commonly found in the South, has wreaked havoc in Brazil over the past year. Zika is linked to a severe birth defect in newborns, called microcephaly, which causes babies to have unusually small heads and cognitive disorders. The disease is now spreading across the Americas. Already there has been one travel-related case of Zika in Georgia. The CDC have so far counted at least 50 travel-related cases in the U.S. since the end of last year.
Zika has also been linked to Guillain Barré syndrome, which would also be monitored as part of the administration’s request.
Because the virus can be transmitted through semen, the CDC has advised any man who has traveled to a country having a Zika outbreak to wear condoms if he has any type of sex with a pregnant woman or any woman who wants to get pregnant. Pregnant women have been advised not to travel to countries where Zika is active.
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