On Zika Preparedness And Response, The US Gets A Failing Grade

There are worrying signs that the United States is unprepared to contain a likely Zika virus outbreak this summer. The critical problems are: insufficient resources for mosquito control, surveillance, and health care; highly variable capabilities and quality of service among public health and mosquito abatement authorities; and weak legal powers to implement critical interventions. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reports that 35 countries and territories in the Americas have confirmed local, vector-borne transmission of Zika since 2015. In the US, local mosquito-borne transmission has been reported in Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and American Samoa. Puerto Rico, in particular, is experiencing a frightening epidemic, and with travel to and from that island and the wider region—and with the Rio Olympics looming—the conditions are ripe for spread into the continental US. On April 13, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concluded that a scientific consensus exists that the Zika virus causes neurological deficits in newborns including microcephaly. The World Health Organization (WHO) has concluded that a scientific consensus exists that Zika virus also causes Guillain-Barré Syndrome — a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks the peripheral nervous system. Scientists also expect that clusters of Zika virus outbreaks will occur this summer in the continental United States, principally in Florida and the Gulf Coast stat...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Costs and Spending Equity and Disparities Featured Public Health CDC Congress outbreaks PAHO Prevention WHO Zika Zika virus Source Type: blogs