Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Insecticides And Long Sleeves: Communities Try To Protect Themselves Against Zika
The New York Times: In Florida, Pregnant Women Cover Up And Stay Inside Amid Zika Fears
Amanda Paradiz is 16 weeks pregnant, and she has a mission: to get through her entire pregnancy without a single mosquito bite. It hasn’t been easy. Ever since health officials in July announced four cases of Zika transmission by local mosquitoes detected in a Miami-area neighborhood, Mrs. Paradiz and her husband, Alex, have largely secluded themselves in their Broward County home. (Rabin, 8/19)
Health News Florida: Zika Fears Stop Sales At Sperm, Egg Bank In Orlando
The Zika virus has changed how blood banks collect donations in Florida – and now it’s changing sperm and egg donations as well. An Orlando sperm and egg donation bank will not sell any specimens collected after August 1 because of the Zika virus. Cryos International is a large sperm bank in Europe, and its first U.S. office is located next to the University of Central Florida in Orlando. (Aboraya, 8/22)
Health News Florida: 'It's Too Hot To Wear Long Sleeves:' Miami Beach Carries On After Zika Announcement
Early Friday afternoon, Gov. Rick Scott announced that the area between Eighth Street and 28th Street in Miami Beach is an active zone of Zika transmission, with five non-travel-related case of the virus linked to the city. However daily life continued uninterrupted in Miami Beach – tourists lounged along Ocean Drive, and residents walked their dogs with tank tops and shorts on. (Kranz, 8/21)
Health News Florida: Expert: As Local Zika Spreads, Do Not Overuse Bug Spray
Toxicologists say Floridians using mosquito repellent for Zika virus prevention should not overuse it. Mosquitoes in Miami-Dade County are transmitting the illness, which is linked to birth defects. And misusing repellent could cause some health issues, too. Most mosquito repellents contain the chemical DEET, like OFF!, Cutter and Sawyer. A study done in the late 1990s showed that when pregnant women used products with DEET as directed, they and their babies were just fine. Alfred Aleguas is director of the Florida Poison Information Center in Tampa. He said, though, it is possible to suffer side effects from applying high concentrations of DEET and then not washing it off. (Meszaros, 8/22)
CBS News: Zika Virus In School: Miami Officials Make Tough Decisions
Monday is the first day of school across Miami - where there are growing concerns about the Zika virus. ... The Florida Department of Health handed out free bug repellent at Miami Beach Senior High. Students from here and one other school in the newest Zika zone were encouraged to spray themselves before class. Melanie Fishman, principal at South Pointe Elementary in Miami, said they don’t want students to spray themselves at school because “some kids might have asthma.” (Begnaud, 8/21)
The Hill: NIH Head: Gulf Coast States Most At Risk For Zika Outbreak
The head of the government's infectious disease center said the states along the Gulf Coast are most at risk for an outbreak of the Zika virus, pointing specifically to Louisiana as it deals with destructive flooding. "I would not be surprised if we see cases in Texas, in Louisiana — particularly now, where you have a situation with flooding in Louisiana," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Health said on ABC's "This Week." (Savransky, 8/21)
The Associated Press: Health Official: Gulf Coast States Most Vulnerable To Zika
A National Institutes of Health official said Sunday that the Zika virus could "hang around" the United States for a year or two. Dr. Anthony Fauci told ABC's "This Week" that other Gulf Coast states, besides Florida, are most vulnerable to the spread of the disease. (8/21)
The New York Times: New York City Wages War On The Zika Virus
The droplets would awaken any insects in the area, cause them to take flight and then kill them. The spraying is called adulticide — as opposed to larvicide, or killing insects before they hatch — and it was the first time that such a truck had ever rolled through the neighborhood. (Santora, 8/21)
Savannah Morning News: Savannah's Tiger Mosquitoes Pesky, But May Shield Us From Zika
If you swat it away, the tiger mosquito buzzes right back. Known scientifically as Aedes albopictus, it lives and breeds around people, and it’s what most people complain about to Chatham County Mosquito Control. But this pesky, striped-legged nuisance might be just what protects the Savannah area from the Zika virus. That’s because it has outcompeted another mosquito, Aedes aegypti, that’s the main carrier of the disease. (Landers, 8/20)
