CDC Risk Analysis: Olympics Won’t Be To Blame For Spread Of Zika
The estimated 350,000 to 500,000 people headed to Brazil for the Olympic and Paralympic Games represent less than 0.25 percent of the total who traveled to Zika-affected countries in 2015. “The relative contribution of the Olympics is really quite small,” said Martin Cetron, director of the CDC’s division of global migration and quarantine.
The Washington Post:
Four Countries Face The Highest Risk Of Zika Virus From The Olympics
Four countries face the highest risk of a Zika outbreak if a single one of their athletes or travelers becomes infected during the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, according to a risk analysis published Wednesday by U.S. health officials. The four countries -- Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea and Yemen -- have the factors that could result in a sustained spread of the mosquito-borne virus in a worst-case scenario, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Sun, 7/13)
The Wall Street Journal:
Global Zika Risk Is Low For Rio Olympics, CDC Says
The 350,000 to 500,000 visitors expected at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in August and September represent less than 0.25% of the total estimated travel to Zika-affected countries in 2015, the CDC analysis found. Estimated travel to the U.S. from Rio for the Games is 0.11% of all 2015 U.S. travel from countries where Zika is now spreading, the CDC said. “The relative contribution of the Olympics is really quite small,” said Martin Cetron, director of the CDC’s division of global migration and quarantine, who led the analysis. (McKay, 7/13)
Stat:
Olympics Pose Direct Zika Threat To Only Four Countries, CDC Says
Brazil’s hosting of the Olympics next month has prompted concern that the games could propel the spread of Zika across the globe. But the event in Rio de Janeiro is unlikely to cause the virus to spread to new places, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC’s risk assessment, published Wednesday, bolsters the case that the games should not fuel much wider spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which can cause birth defects when it infects pregnant women. A key reason: Even though hundreds of thousands of people are expected to head to Rio, they represent only a small percentage of the overall travel to and from areas with Zika transmission. (Joseph, 7/13)
Meanwhile, tensions continue to roil on the Hill over the funding stalemate —
The Hill:
GOP Chairman Blasts White House Over Zika Spending
A top GOP chairman is blasting the White House for what he described as millions of dollars that could be used to fight the Zika virus, as Congress is locked in a tense partisan stalemate over funding for the virus. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) said Wednesday that the Obama administration has spent just $90 million of the $590 million it redirected from its Ebola virus fund in April to launch efforts against Zika. (Ferris, 7/13)
Morning Consult:
McConnell, Ryan Turned Down White House Meeting On Zika, Reid Says
Republican leaders in Congress declined a meeting with administration officials to work on fighting the Zika virus, Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) revealed Wednesday on the Senate floor. Still, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday that he’s spoken with both President Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell about the issue. (McIntire, 7/13)
And media outlets cover developments out of the states —
The Texas Tribune:
First Baby With Zika-Related Microcephaly Born In Texas
A baby boy born with microcephaly in Harris County is the first Zika-affected infant in Texas, the Texas Department of State Health Services announced Wednesday. The baby's mother contracted Zika in Colombia, and the baby was infected in the womb, according Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County Public Health. The baby was born a few weeks ago in Harris County outside of Houston, and tests confirmed that he had Zika on Monday, Shah said. (Taft, 7/13)
Orlando Sentinel:
Zika Update: 2 New Cases In Orange County; Florida Total: 293
The number of travel-related Zika cases in Florida is getting closer to 300, including 11 new cases confirmed on Wednesday by the state health department. There have been 25 cases in Orange, 12 in Osceola, nine in Seminole and one in Lake County, since the state began reporting travel-related Zika cases in eary February. (Miller, 7/13)
Richmond Times Dispatch:
Virginia Will Begin Testing Mosquitoes For Zika Virus In Targeted Areas
As the number of Virginians infected with the Zika virus jumped to 38 this week, state health care leaders gathered Wednesday to educate the public and share tactics on ways to prevent the virus, which has spread rapidly through Latin America and the Caribbean, from doing so in Virginia. ... There has yet to be a local transmission of Zika — which is spread through mosquitoes and sexual activity — in the U.S. All the reported cases of the illness in Virginia are related to residents traveling outside the country.
As of July 7, the number of infected Virginians stood at 33. (Demeria, 7/13)