Pointing to international concerns about the spread of the Zika virus, U.S. Rep. Curt Clawson, R-Fla., has three proposals to help the U.S. ready for it.
On Friday, the Southwest Florida congressman brought out three bills all focused on Zika. Clawson’s legislation would offer 10 percent tax credits for research and development expenses of companies looking for a vaccine; keep a grant program funded at $1 billion over a five year period which helps states support mosquito control efforts; and sends excess funds already penciled in for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to fight Ebola shift over to be used against the Zika virus.
When he introduced the bills, Clawson noted he had been bit by a mosquito overseas and came down with dengue fever.
“The explosive spread of this mosquito-borne virus, exacerbated by a lack of vaccines and reliable diagnostic tests, must be curbed utilizing every tool at our disposal in a coordinated international response,” Clawson said before focusing on his district. “Given the tropical nature of Southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast, my district is highly susceptible to an outbreak, with 18 travel-related cases already reported in the state of Florida. The Aedes aegypti species of mosquito, the main carrier of the virus, is widely found in Florida. The Zika virus is sneaking up on us and we’re not paying enough attention. If we deal with it prior to an outbreak we will be much better off.”
As of Monday afternoon, there were 21 cases of the Zika virus reported in Florida, all of them travel-related. Seven of those cases were in Miami Dade, four in Broward County, three in both Hillsborough and Lee counties while Alachua, Osceloa, Santa Rosa and St. Johns counties each had one case.
In parts of South America, particularly Brazil, there are reports that mosquitos have transmitted the virus which has caused birth defects by biting pregnant women.
“Zika virus is spread to people through mosquito bites,” the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) notes on its website. “The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes). The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon. In May 2015, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) issued an alert regarding the first confirmed Zika virus infection in Brazil. The outbreak in Brazil led to reports of Guillain-Barré syndrome and pregnant women giving birth to babies with birth defects and poor pregnancy outcomes."
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
