The Zika Coffers Are Bare, CDC Director Warns
If the virus starts spreading more broadly within the country, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the agency's hands will be tied as its financial resources will run out next month.
The New York Times:
U.S. Funding For Fighting Zika Virus Is Nearly Spent, C.D.C. Says
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Tuesday that federal funds to fight the Zika virus were nearly exhausted, and that if Congress did not replenish them soon, there would be no money to fight a new outbreak. As of Friday, the C.D.C. had spent $194 million of the $222 million it was allocated to fight the virus, said Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the director of the agency. Congress left for its summer recess without approving additional funding. Now that the virus is actively circulating in Florida, Dr. Frieden is pressing his case for funding with new urgency. (Tavernise, 8/30)
The Washington Post:
Centers For Disease Control Will Run Out Of Money To Fight Zika In U.S. Next Month
The federal agency leading the public health response to the Zika threat in the United States will run out of funding to combat the mosquito-borne virus by late September, its director said Monday. "The cupboard is bare," said Tom Frieden, who heads the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Basically, we're out of money, and we need Congress to act to allow us to respond effectively." Of the $222 million that the CDC allocated for domestic Zika response this year, about $200 million has been committed, Frieden said during a media roundtable in Washington. "The rest will be gone by the end of September." (Sun, 8/30)
NBC News:
CDC Almost Out Of Zika Money, Director Says
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is almost out of money to fight the Zika virus, the agency's director said Tuesday — just hours before Florida announced three fresh homegrown cases of the infection. Zika has now infected 46 people locally in Florida, presumably spread by mosquitoes. One case is part of an outbreak in Miami Beach and health officials say they're trying to trace the origins of two others. (Fox, 8/30)
The Hill:
CDC Director On Zika: 'Basically, We're Out Of Money'
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday made his strongest case yet for Congress to include funding to combat the Zika virus in its stopgap spending bill next month. “Basically, we’re out of money,” Dr. Tom Frieden told reporters at a briefing in downtown Washington. “Congress needs to do something.” (Ferris, 8/30)
Meanwhile, Theranos' efforts to implement a blood test for Zika are blocked, Florida lawmakers push for the use of genetically modified mosquitoes and scientists discover another way the virus damages babies —
The Wall Street Journal:
Theranos Halts New Zika Test After FDA Inspection
Theranos Inc. withdrew its request for emergency clearance of a Zika-virus blood test after federal regulators found that the company didn’t include proper patient safeguards in a study of the new test, said people familiar with the matter. The move is another setback for the Palo Alto, Calif., company as it tries to recover from crippling regulatory sanctions that followed revelations by The Wall Street Journal of shortcomings in Theranos’s technology and operations. Theranos has said it is appealing. (Carreyrou and Weaver, 8/30)
Health News Florida:
Lawmakers Call For Use Of Modified Mosquitoes In Zika Fight
Incoming leaders of the Florida House said Monday they will urge the federal government to allow the use of genetically engineered mosquitoes to help fight the Zika virus. Incoming House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O' Lakes, said he plans to ask the federal government to allow emergency use of the technology in areas of Florida where transmission of the mosquito-borne disease might occur. Incoming House Minority Leader, Janet Cruz, D-Tampa, backed the idea, and other House members have until 5 p.m. Wednesday to sign on. (8/30)
Health News Florida:
Maker Of Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Pledges Transparency
The for-profit company Oxitec has been in the news lately. Federal regulators recently gave the OK for Oxitec to start testing its genetically engineered mosquitoes. Come election time in November, the residents of Monroe County will vote on whether or not they want the engineered mosquitoes in their area. Oxitec wants to test the mosquitoes in the Key Haven community just outside Key West. Residents have voiced an outcry against the synthetic mosquitoes. (Rabines, 8/30)
NBC News:
Zika Damages Babies' Hearing, Study Finds
The Zika virus not only causes severe brain damage, but also hearing loss in some babies, Brazilian researchers reported Tuesday. The risk to hearing has been suspected. The latest report, released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, finds 6 percent to 7 percent of babies with clear Zika brain damage also had some amount of hearing loss.The findings suggest all babies born to women infected with Zika during pregnancy are at risk, Mariana Leal of Hospital Agamenon Magalhães in Brazil and colleagues said. (Fox, 8/30)
Health News Florida:
Health Officials Find Another Local Zika Case In Miami-Dade
State health officials on Monday reported another locally transmitted case of the Zika virus in Miami-Dade County. The new case brings the state total of locally transmitted Zika cases to 43, with the Florida Department of Health reporting the latest incident was associated with a 1.5-square-mile zone in Miami Beach. That area, along with a 1-square-mile area in the Wynwood community in Miami, have been focuses of state efforts to combat the spread of the mosquito-borne virus. The majority of cases, 545 as of Monday, are travel-related, meaning individuals contracted the virus outside of Florida but then traveled to the state. (8/30)
Tampa Bay Times:
First Victim Of Local Zika Infection Is Tampa FireFighter Living In Pinellas
The single victim of a locally transmitted Zika virus infection in the Tampa Bay area is a firefighter with Tampa Fire Rescue who lives in Pinellas County, an agency spokesman said today. Personnel at the station where the firefighter works also were tested for Zika and the results were negative, said Jason Penny, Tampa Fire Rescue spokesman. (O'Donnell, 8/30)
And media outlets look at how Zika is spreading across the world —
CNN:
Zika Around The World: Where Do We Stand?
Zika continues its march around the world. Moving from Africa to French Polynesia to Central and South America, the disease is now active in the United States and Asia, and is likely to continue to spread. (LaMotte, 8/30)
PBS NewsHour:
82 Cases Of Zika Emerge From Singapore's Local Outbreak In Less Than A Week
A local Zika outbreak is blooming in Singapore, as 82 cases of the disease without links to travel have emerged on the island city-state in less than a week. The country’s first locally transmitted Zika case was announced on Saturday when a 47-year-old Malaysian woman living in the neighborhood of Aljunied Crescent tested positive for the virus. Since then, disease detectives used surveillance techniques to identify additional cases. (Mason, 8/30)