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August 9, 2016 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH DAILY ZIKA UPDATE Contact: Communications [email protected] (850) 245-4111 Tallahassee, Fla.—In an effort to keep Florida residents and visitors safe and aware about the status of the Zika virus, the department will continue to issue a Zika virus update each week day at 2 p.m. Updates will include a CDC-confirmed Zika case count by county and information to better keep Floridians prepared. The department has conducted testing for the Zika virus for more than 2,567 people statewide. Florida currently has the capacity to test 6,053 people for active Zika virus and 1,691 for Zika antibodies. Per the Governor’s direction on August 3, all county health departments are now offering free Zika risk assessment and testing to any pregnant woman who would like to be tested. There are 14 new travel-related cases today with four in Miami-Dade County, three in Orange County, two in Hernando County, one in Broward County, one in Lee County, one in Monroe County and two involving pregnant women. This is Hernando and Monroe counties first travel-related cases of Zika and they have been added to the Declaration of Public Health Emergency. Please visit ourwebsite to see the full list of travel-related cases. There are four new non-travel related cases today being investigated in Miami-Dade County. All four were exposed in the identified area of concern in Miami-Dade County.The department still believes active transmissions are only taking place within the identified area that is less than one-square mile in Miami-Dade County. For a complete breakdown of non-travel and travel-related Zika infections to-date, please see below. Infection Type Infection Count Travel-Related Infections of Zika 369 Non-Travel Related Infections of Zika 21 *six of these meet CDC’s case definition Infections Involving Pregnant Women 57 ACTIVE INVESTIGATIONS The department is currently conducting three active investigations. Under each section below, the department outlines the original cases that spurred these investigations, the number of samples collected and results in connection with each investigation to-date. 1) Identified one-square mile in Miami-Dade – Two (2) original cases Total # of Samples Collected Negative Samples Positive Samples Pending Results 455 424 17 14 Door to door outreach and sampling continue. Mosquito abatement and reduction activities are on-going. On August 4, the department announced we have completed testing in a 10 block area of the northwest quadrant of the one-square mile area and no people within the 10 block radius tested positive. The department has cleared that area and is continuing to test people within the one-square mile radius. A map detailing the area is below. The CDC continues to monitor the area per their guidelines. 2) Miami-Dade investigation outside the one-square mile: One (1) case Total # of Samples Collected Negative Samples Positive Samples Pending Results 19 16 0 3 Sample collection and door-to-door outreach continues. Mosquito abatement and reduction activities are on-going. 3) One (1) case in Palm Beach County: Total # of Samples Collected Negative Samples Positive Samples Pending Results 1 0 0 1 Door to door outreach and sample collection in areas of interest around the case are underway. Mosquito abatement and reduction activities will take place around the area of interest. CLOSED INVESTIGATIONS The department has closed out the investigations into the first cases in Miami-Dade and Broward County (two cases). The department tested 124 close contacts and individuals from the community and found no additional positives. The department still believes active transmissions are only taking place within the identified one-square mile area in Miami-Dade County. There are no active investigations in Broward County and no areas of active transmission in Broward County. One case does not mean active transmission is taking place and that’s why the department conducts a thorough investigation by sampling close contacts and community members around each case to determine if additional people are infected. The department has not yet determined where the individual in Palm Beach County or the individual outside the one-square mile in Miami-Dade County likely contracted Zika and will share more details as the investigations progress. If the department finds evidence that active transmission is occurring in an area, we will notify the media and the public. The department still believes active transmissions of the Zika virus are occurring in one small area in Miami-Dade County, just north of downtown. The exact location is within the boundaries of the following area: NW 5th Avenue to the west, US 1 to the east, NW/NE 38th Street to the north and NW/NE 20thStreet to the south. This area is about one square mile and a map is below to detail the area. This remains the only area of the state where the department has confirmed there are local transmissions of Zika. If investigations reveal additional areas of likely active transmission, the department will announce a defined area of concern. CDC recommends that women who are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant postpone travel to areas with widespread Zika infection. Florida’s small case cluster is not considered widespread transmission, however, pregnant women are advised to avoid non-essential travel to the impacted area in Miami-Dade County (see map below). If you are pregnant and must travel or if you live or work in the impacted area, protect yourself from mosquito bites by wearing insect repellent, long clothing and limiting your time outdoors. According to CDC guidance, providers should consider testing all pregnant women with a history of travel to a Zika affected area for the virus. It is also recommended that all pregnant women who reside in or travel frequently to the area where active transmission is likely occurring be tested for Zika in the first and second trimester. Pregnant women in the identified area can contact their medical provider or their local county health department to be tested and receive a Zika prevention kit. CDC recommends that a pregnant woman with a history of Zika virus and her provider should consider additional ultrasounds. Additionally, the department is working closely with the Healthy Start Coalition of Miami-Dade County to identify pregnant women in the one square mile area to ensure they have access to resources and information to protect themselves. CDC recommends that a pregnant woman with a history of Zika virus and her provider should consider additional ultrasounds. Pregnant women can contact their local county health department for Zika risk assessment and testing hours and information. A Zika risk assessment will be conducted by county health department staff and blood and/or urine samples may be collected and sent to labs for testing. It may take one to two weeks to receive results. Florida has been monitoring pregnant women with evidence of Zika regardless of symptoms since January. The total number of pregnant women who have been or are being monitored is 57. On Feb. 12, Governor Scott directed the State Surgeon General to activate a Zika Virus Information Hotline for current Florida residents and visitors, as well as anyone planning on traveling to Florida in the near future. The hotline, managed by the Department of Health, has assisted 3,710 callers since it launched. The number for the Zika Virus Information Hotline is 1-855-622-6735. The department urges Floridians to drain standing water weekly, no matter how seemingly small. A couple drops of water in a bottle cap can be a breeding location for mosquitoes. Residents and visitors also need to use repellents when enjoying the Florida outdoors. For more information on DOH action and federal guidance, please click here. For resources and information on Zika virus, click here. About the Florida Department of Health The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts. Follow us on Twitter at @HealthyFla and on Facebook. For more information about the Florida Department of Health, please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.

There are four new non-travel related cases today being investigated in Miami-Dade County. All four were exposed in the identified area of concern in Miami-Dade County.The department still believes active transmissions are only taking place within the identified area that is less than one-square mile in Miami-Dade County. http://www.floridahealth.gov/newsroom/2016/08/080916-zika-update.html

Miami-Dade County commissioners hold emergency Zika virus meeting Hillary Clinton to tour medical clinic near Wynwood as number grows to 21 By Erica Rakow - Reporter , Associated Press , Amanda Batchelor - Senior Digital Editor Posted: 11:02 AM, August 09, 2016Updated: 3:18 PM, August 09, 2016 MIAMI - Miami-Dade County commissioners are holding an emergency meeting Tuesday to discuss the ongoing efforts to combat the Zika virus. The meeting was held on the same day that Gov. Rick Scott said four more people have locally acquired the Zika virus, likely from mosquito bites in Miami's Wynwood neighborhood. More Zika Virus Headlines Wynwood businesses impacted by Zika scares Palm Beach County resident acquires Zika virus, Gov. Rick Scott says Wynwood businesses see drop in customers as aerial spraying continues to… That brings the total number of non-travel-related cases of the Zika virus in Florida to 21. "All four of these cases are located in the same, small area of Wynwood, that is less than 1 square mile," Scott said. The mayor, mosquito control, senators, Miami-Dade's police director, other elected officials and health representatives gathered together to discuss the response to the Zika virus in Miami-Dade County, what has been done and what still needs to be done to try to contain the virus. Aerial spraying was last done on Sunday, and Mayor Carlos Gimenez said it will be done again Wednesday and Sunday. The mayor said since the spraying began over the same 10-square mile area in and around Wynwood, the population of mosquitoes that carry the virus in the area has been reduced by 97 percent. Mosquito control has traps set up. The mayor said 25 Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were being found in the traps daily at first, but that was reduced to nine, and now it's down to less than one per trap. He said the spraying is just one of several ways the county is working to control the number of infected in South Florida. The area of concentration is between Northwest Fifth Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard to Northwest 38th and Northwest 20th streets. Scott said he has directed state health and education officials to work together in providing Zika virus prevention guidance and resources to students, parents and educators. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton will call on Congress to return to Washington and pass emergency funding for the Zika response during a Tuesday visit to South Florida. The Democratic presidential candidate plans to tour the Borinquen Medical Center, a health clinic close to the Wynwood area. She will demand Republican leaders bring Congress back in session to either pass stalled legislation or craft a new bipartisan compromise bill to provide funding for testing, treatment and research on the disease, according to aides briefed on her plans. Clinton's running mate, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, has already said he'd return to Washington for a vote on a Zika virus bill. Clinton will also attend two fundraisers for her campaign while she is in South Florida, including a $2,700-a-head fundraiser at the home of Dr. Bruce Carter and a dinner in Miami Beach, hosted by sugar magnate Alfonso Fanjul and investor Paul Cejas. http://www.local10.com/health/zika-virus/miami-dade-county-commissioners-hold-emergency-zika-virus-meeting

Four new cases of locally-transmitted Zika in Miami brings total to 21 7 News WSVN MIAMI (WSVN) - The Florida Department of Health has identified four new people who have tested positive for the Zika virus in Miami-Dade County, bringing the new total of locally-transmitted cases to 21. According to Florida Gov. Rick Scott, the Florida Department of Health (DOH) confirmed, Tuesday, four new people likely contracted the virus in the Wynwood area of Miami, most likely through a mosquito bite. DOH still believes active transmissions are only taking place in Wynwood. http://wsvn.com/news/local/four-new-cases-of-locally-transmitted-zika-in-miami-brings-total-to-21/

Map Update https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?hl=en&hl=en&authuser=0&authuser=0&mid=1FlIB7hHnVgGD9TlbSx5HwAj-PEQ

GOV. SCOTT: FOUR NEW INDIVIDUALS WITH ZIKA IN MIAMI – CONGRESS MUST COME BACK TO WORK On August 9, 2016, in News Releases, by Staff LIVE OAK, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott announced that the Florida Department of Health (DOH) has identified four additional people in Florida with the Zika virus who likely contracted it through a mosquito bite. This brings the total number of people with locally transmitted Zika to 21. DOH still believes active transmissions are only taking place within the identified area that is less than one-square mile in Miami-Dade County. More details will be announced when the investigation concludes. Governor Scott said, “Today, we have learned that there are four new individuals that have local transmissions of Zika in our state, likely through a mosquito bite. All four of these cases are located in the same, small area of Wynwood that is less than one square mile. Earlier this summer, I allocated more than $26 million in state funds to fight Zika and I have continued to meet with local leaders to ensure they have all of the needed resources. But, every day that passes that Congress and the president fail to come to an agreement hinders our national response to Zika. This is not only an issue affecting us here in Florida – this is a national issue. Florida is just at the head of it with the first cases of local transmission of Zika. Just today, we learned that a baby born with microcephaly caused by Zika died in Texas – a heartbreaking tragedy in our country. “While Florida has been preparing for Zika since February, we know many other states don’t have the same resources we have. The Obama Administration has still not fulfilled our requests for an additional 10,000 Zika prevention kits for pregnant women or a detailed plan on how they would like Florida to work with FEMA on requesting emergency response funds since this has become mosquito-borne in our state. The federal government must stop playing politics and Congress needs to immediately come back to session to resolve this.”

Today, Governor Rick Scott announced that the Florida Department of Health (DOH) has identified four additional people in Florida with the Zika virus who likely contracted it through a mosquito bite. This brings the total number of people with locally transmitted Zika to 21. DOH still believes active transmissions are only taking place within the identified area that is less than one-square mile in Miami-Dade County. More details will be announced when the investigation concludes. http://www.flgov.com/2016/08/09/gov-scott-four-new-individuals-with-zika-in-miami-congress-must-come-back-to-work/

Bradford said it was his understanding that the patient regularly worked in and near Wynwood, a popular arts district in Miami that state health department officials believe is the only area with active local transmission of the virus. http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/local/official-believes-low-potential-for-active-zika-in/nsCjL/

Bradford said it was his understanding that the patient regularly worked in and near Wynwood, a popular arts district in Miami that state health department officials believe is the only area with active local transmission of the virus. http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/local/official-believes-low-potential-for-active-zika-in/nsCjL/

Media reports cite an epidemiological link between the Palm Beach Co case and Wynwood.

The 17th case is a Palm Beach county resident. Although the case had traveled to Miami-Dade, the press release failed to note if travel to Wynwood was included. However, the Palm Beach case was the 4th local transmission case (the 4 were from 3 different counties) that was not reported to be linked to Wynwood, suggesting that local transmission by mosquitoes in Florida is widespread.

The 16th lab confirmed local case was one of the 26 contacts of the two index cases in Wynwood. This case increased the number linked to Wynwood to 13 and highlighted the extremely high attack rate in contacts or nearby residents. The above case was the 5th contact confirmed out of the 26 tested. At least one of the five was confirmed with an IgM antibody test which followed a negative PCR test. The negative PCR test(s) indicated one or more of the symptomatic contacts had already cleared most of the virus when the serum/urine sample was collected, highlighting the limitations for the PCR test(s). Moreover, the data suggested at least some of the contacts had been infected in June. These data also suggested that the attack rate for nearby residents might have been higher than the 6/52 positives for urine samples from asymptomatic cases. Some of the 46 negatives may have also been infected at an earlier date and would have tested positive only on an IgM antibody test, but there was no indication that these residents were also tested for antibodies (at least two family members of one of the positives tested negative on the urine PCR test). Similarly, the 52 samples would represent a small subset of nearby residents, (as well as others who may have visited the area in June or July). Thus, the high detection rates in nearby residents or contacts suggested the number locally infected was markedly higher than the 13 confirmed cases.

A 500-Square-Foot Area in Miami Is Ground Zero for the Zika Virus By PAM BELLUCKAUG. 8, 2016 Continue reading the main storyShare This Page Share Tweet Email More Around July 4, a patient entered an emergency room in Miami-Dade County with a fever, a rash and joint pain — three of the four classic symptoms of the Zika virus. By this point, there had already been about 1,600 other Zika cases in the continental United States, but it soon became clear that this one was different. All the other patients had either traveled to Latin America or the Caribbean, where Zika had been raging for months — or they had sex or close contact with someone who had been there. Not this patient. It was the case public health officials had been expecting and dreading: A person in the continental United States had been infected from the bite of a local mosquito. It would turn out to be the first of a wave of cases health officials are now scrambling to identify and contain. They are investigating 17 suspected cases of locally transmitted Zika — including 13 linked to a 500-square-foot area that touches two neighboring businesses in the Wynwood section of Miami. While officials are confident that Zika will never run rampant in the United States, the chase is on in South Florida as more local cases are identified and Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, the type that carry Zika, stay one step ahead of the spray. Public health officials are also grappling with, well, the public: Some think that the authorities should warn pregnant women away from much more than one square mile, and still others seem unaware that Zika, while mild or inconsequential for most people, can cause devastating brain damage to the babies of infected pregnant women. Photo A family from Peru in front of the Wynwood Walls in Miami this month. August is the slow season for Florida’s $82 billion tourism industry. CreditAlan Diaz/Associated Press “Obviously when people detect local transmission, there’s a lot of different opinions,” said Dr. Lyle R. Petersen, who is managing the Zika response of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “People panic and there’s potential for irrational thinking in either direction, not doing enough and doing too much.” Last week the agency took the unprecedented step of urging people to stay away from a place in the continental United States, warning pregnant women to avoid the square-mile area of Wynwood that contains the 500-square-foot patch and the two unidentified businesses. Dr. Petersen said because the continental United States has better mosquito control, more air-conditioning and less standing water than other countries dealing with the Zika virus, there are most likely to be only “handfuls of local transmission and very rare outbreaks,” which will be containable with a targeted response. “It’s not the whole city — it’s a very small part of the city,” Dr. Petersen said of the possible risk in Miami. “So the recommendation is just don’t go there, particularly if you’re pregnant. In the rest of the city, you’re more likely to get killed in a car crash than you are to get Zika virus.” The story of the homegrown Zika cases demonstrates both the value and the limits of planning when the enemy is an unpredictable and stealthy virus delivered by a hardy mosquito adept at hide-and-seek. In a 60-page blueprint this year, the C.D.C. outlined detailed steps to take, and officials have been assiduously tracking the patients, testing people close to them and amping up mosquito control. Still, battling Zika in Wynwood is challenging because its mixture of businesses, apartments and warehouses makes it a veritable urban mosquito mecca. Slices of the gentrifying neighborhood are bursting with art galleries, boutiques and condominiums, but they give way to a still-tattered section of run-down buildings where residents struggle in poverty. “This is low-income,” Tony Fonseca, 45, a construction worker, said as he stood outside the La Fama Supermarket at Northwest Second Avenue and 31st Street. “People live on welfare, they use drugs. You walk around here at night, you can get assaulted — they’ll steal your Ray-Bans.” That part of Wynwood, Mr. Fonseca said, has “lots of standing water,” but he said people in this predominantly Latino neighborhood tend to blame foreign visitors to the arts district for bringing the Zika virus. “Maybe someone brought it from Latin America,” said Mr. Fonseca, born in Miami of Nicaraguan parents. “But no one around here is worried about it.” A firefighter taking a break at a coffee shop on Northwest Second Avenue said two of his female colleagues, both pregnant, were temporarily transferred to a station several miles south, near Coconut Grove. But as Florida health department workers go door to door asking for urine samples to test, seeking to learn the extent of the Zika risk in Wynwood, not everyone sees the need. Diana Ozuna, 27, declined to be tested, even after her 53-year-old mother, who lives nearby, submitted a urine sample of her own. Ms. Ozuna said she lowered her window screens and used repellent, especially on her 20-month-old daughter. Still, because she is not pregnant and has no immediate plans to be, she does not perceive Zika to be a great menace. “It’s bad,” she said, “but it’s not something that you die from.” Zika is an enemy most people cannot see. While its effects can be catastrophic to developing fetuses, in adults the effects are usually mild or negligible, and health officials assume that for every person with symptoms, four more have undetected Zika infection. After the first case appeared in July, the Florida Department of Health tested 54 people who had some connection to the patient or lived within 150 meters of the patient’s apartment building, the maximum distance experts say mosquitoes that carry Zika can typically travel. None of those 54 tested positive, the department said. Days later, around July 8, another homegrown Zika case showed up in Broward County, adjacent to Miami-Dade: a person who had visited a family doctor, complaining of fever, rash, headache and joint pain. In Broward, the health department tested 70 contacts and neighbors of Patient No. 2. All tested negative. And Patient No. 2 had no connection to Patient No. 1. “They had never been even close to each other,” Dr. Petersen said. And “there was no third person. It wasn’t like you could say, ‘Oh, Harry in the apartment next door has the same symptoms.’” That there were two isolated cases in different neighborhoods was, in some ways, a relief. It meant that there was no danger zone, no place rife with infected mosquitoes. Most likely, a person who had traveled to Latin America had landed in Miami with Zika, been bitten by an Aedes aegypti mosquito in Florida, which, now infected itself, had bitten a person in Miami-Dade. The same thing had probably happened via a different mosquito in Broward, they believe. County workers unleashed mosquito control tactics where those patients lived, and the health department determined that those neighborhoods were not active Zika zones Then two other cases appeared — one in Broward and one in Miami-Dade, people whose symptoms started on July 9 or July 10. They were not connected to Patient No. 1 or Patient No. 2. But they were connected to each other. “They worked in businesses that were very close to each other,” Dr. Petersen said. Because both businesses were in Wynwood, “obviously it looked like there was a potential link between the two. They were in close proximity, two people who were sort of in the same area working.” On July 29, officials announced the four cases of local transmission. But it was still unclear whether Wynwood had an outbreak or just two local cases. Determining the answer would depend on two things: Were there other Wynwood-linked cases besides the two workers, and was the mosquito-killing campaign launched when those two cases were identified killing enough mosquitoes? The Florida health department began asking for urine samples from employees and people who lived or worked near the businesses, which are small and do not draw much public traffic, but have outdoor spaces that might have been attractive to mosquitoes. Over the weekend of July 30, lab results came in. Of 26 people closely connected to the Wynwood workers, four were considered to have Zika. Six of 52 people tested in the neighborhood did too. There were now 12 infected people with Wynwood connections, all between the ages of 20 and 45. “All the people that were positive spent time either at those businesses or in the immediate 150 meters around those businesses,” Dr. Petersen said. The core transmission zone was even smaller. “The area that has demonstrated the spread of Zika is only a 500-square-foot area,” Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the director of the C.D.C., said at a news conference in Miami. None of the people infected in Wynwood was related or had sexually transmitted the virus to each other. Some were part of a group of “friends that hang out together,” Dr. Petersen said, and two were housemates. Officials declined to say if either of the women was pregnant. The earliest infection in the group probably occurred in late June, meaning that Zika had been in Wynwood for at least a week longer than officials had previously known. “This had been going on for practically a month,” Dr. Petersen said, so “you have to basically assume that there’s ongoing transmission.” Moreover, officials responsible for mosquito control reported in the last weekend of July that “despite daily use of spraying,” they were “still seeing new larval mosquitoes and moderately high Aedes aegypti counts,” Dr. Frieden said, adding that the mosquitoes might be resistant to the insecticides being used, or simply hiding in pockets unreachable by backpack- and truck-spraying. “Aggressive mosquito control measures don’t seem to be working as well as we would like.” On Friday, after aerial spraying with a different insecticide began in Wynwood, the mosquito numbers were coming down, Dr. Frieden said. The C.D.C. will likely keep its Wynwood warning in place for weeks, lifting it only when about 45 days have passed without a new case being diagnosed, or when mosquito counts decrease substantially, Dr. Petersen said. As of yesterday, the health department said it had tested 437 people in the square-mile active zone and identified only one additional case — someone among the 26 close contacts of the two Wynwood workers. Wynwood is still the only area authorities consider an active local transmission zone. So far, a 10-block area in the northwest section of the square mile has been cleared, since no one there was found to be infected, Gov. Rick Scott of Florida said. But authorities expect more cases to be identified, some in Wynwood, some elsewhere. On Monday, they announced a 17th case: a person in Palm Beach County who had traveled to Miami-Dade. Nick Madigan contributed reporting. Like the Science Times page on Facebook. | Sign up for the Science Times newsletter. A version of this article appears in print on August 9, 2016, on page A9 of the New York edition with the headline: A 500-Square-Foot Area in Miami Is Ground Zero for Zika. Order Reprints| Today's Paper|Subscribe http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/health/zika-virus-florida.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&smid=tw-nythealth&smtyp=cur&_r=0 .story-link { position: relative; display: block; text-decoration: none; padding: 6px 0; min-height: 65px; min-width: 300px; } .story-link:hover { background-color: #eeeeec; } .story-kicker, .story-heading, .summary { margin: 0; padding: 0; } .thumb { position: absolute; left: 0; top: 6px; } .thumb-hover, .story-link:hover .thumb-main { display: none } .thumb-main, .story-link:hover .thumb-hover { display: block } .story-body { padding-left: 75px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px; font-weight: 400; color: #000; } .story-body .story-kicker { font-family: 'nyt-franklin', arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; font-size: 11px; line-height: 11px; font-weight: 400; color: #5caaf3; } .story-heading { font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px; font-weight: 700; padding: 5px 0 0; }

Palm Beach County gets first local case; S. Florida gets Zika safe sex billboards CAPTIONWasserman Schultz speaks to senior citizens about Zika virus Wasserman Schultz speaks to senior citizens about Zika virus Pest companies cash in with Zika Gov. Scott Tours Wynwood, Discuss Zika Battle Zika Fight Goes Airborne Zika Concerns Prompt Street By Street Sweep & Call For More Funding Diane C. LadeContact ReporterSun Sentinel Gov. Scott says Palm Beach County has first Zika case possibly acquired from local mosquitoes. Privacy Policy Gov. Rick Scott announced Monday that state health officials are investigating Palm Beach County's first locally transmitted case of the Zika virus. The infected person recently had been in Miami-Dade County, according to a written statement from the Governor's Office, and investigators are trying to determine the source of the infection. Florida's 17 locally acquired cases in Miami-Dade and Broward counties are the first in the continental United States. Thirteen of those cases are clustered in a 1-square-mile area centered around Miami's Wynwood Arts District. At this point, state health officials think active Zika transmission is taking place only in the Miami-Wynwood cluster area. Officials closed investigations into two Broward cases: one involved someone who had traveled to the Miami cluster area; the infection source for the second case could not be determined. Promoted stories from PoliticsChatter.com August 4 roundup: Anti-Trump conservatives get their candidate and more Where do presidents’ kids go to college? 19 things to know about FOX News anchor Megyn Kelly In early August, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued its first-ever advisory against travel to a U.S. destination when it advised pregnant women not to visit the Miami-Wynwood area. Zika can cause severe birth defects if a woman is infected during pregnancy. Zika virus: Latest news and updates The Florida Department of Health on Monday reported six new travel-related cases statewide, including two in Miami-Dade. One was in Tallahassee's Leon County and the first for that area. Florida now has a total of 429 cases, including 55 involving pregnant women. Miami-Dade has 55 travel-related cases, the most of any county. Broward has 55, and Palm Beach County has 20. Zika investigations include testing the close contacts of positive patients, as well as trapping and screening local mosquitoes to see whether they carry the virus. So far, none of the more than 23,000 insect samples tested by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has been positive. Spokeswoman Jennifer Meale said Palm Beach County was among those that had submitted samples. CAPTIONWasserman Schultz speaks to senior citizens about Zika virus Wasserman Schultz speaks to senior citizens about Zika virus Pest companies cash in with Zika Gov. Scott Tours Wynwood, Discuss Zika Battle Zika Fight Goes Airborne Zika Concerns Prompt Street By Street Sweep & Call For More Funding Meanwhile, prevention continues to be stressed as Florida enters its typically hottest and rainiest months, which are mosquitoes' peak breeding time. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation has unveiled three billboards with an unmistakable message: an image of a condom emblazoned with the words "Prevent Zika transmission." Two of the signs are near the busy juncture of Interstate 95 and Interstate 595, close to Hollywood-Fort Lauderdale International Airport. The other billboard is in Homestead, along U.S. 1. Scientific researchers, at first dubious, now agree that Zika can be sexually transmitted, although being bitten by an infected mosquito is the most common way to get the virus. Among the more than 1,800 Zika cases in the U.S. mainland, the CDC lists 16 as sexually transmitted. The CDC has issued multiple updates on how couples — particularly those where one person is pregnant, or one person has traveled to a Zika hot spot — should protect themselves from sexual transmission. Recommendations are to use a condom or abstain from eight weeks to six months, depending on the situation. The Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation placed the billboards in areas it previously targeted for safe sex campaigns, said spokesman W. Imara Canady. The media fever around Zika provides a good opportunity to educate everyone about safe sex, he said. "We want to encourage people to be proactive about having healthy and safe sexual interactions," Canady said. [email protected] or 954-356-4295 http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-zika-palm-beach-local-case-20160808-story.html

Microcephaly map update https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1RcVTrkYW6hax_iITjKUkEcBCVeI

HARRIS COUNTY INFANT DIES IN FIRST ZIKA-RELATED DEATH IN TEXAS (KTRK) Updated 7 mins ago HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Texas has confirmed that an infant who recently died in Harris County had microcephaly linked to the Zika virus. The baby passed away shortly after birth and is the first Zika-related death reported in Texas. During her pregnancy, the mother was in Latin America, where she was infected, and the baby acquired the infection in the womb. Recent test results confirmed the baby's condition and link to Zika. The mother and baby are classified as travel-related cases, and there is no additional associated risk in Texas. Last month Texas reported the state's first case of microcephaly linked to Zika, also a Harris County infant. "Zika's impact on unborn babies can be tragic, and our hearts are with this family," said Dr. John Hellerstedt, Texas Department of State Health Services commissioner. "Our central mission from the beginning has been to do everything we can to protect unborn babies from the devastating effects of Zika." DSHS is coordinating with Harris County Public Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to follow the cases. Texas has reported 97 cases of Zika virus disease, including the two infants with microcephaly from Harris County. All Texas cases are related to travel abroad to areas with active Zika transmission. There have been no reported cases of Zika virus disease transmitted by mosquitoes in Texas, but Texas is on alert for the possibility local transmission. With its link to microcephaly, Zika poses a serious threat to unborn children. DSHS is tracking the number of pregnant women with Zika in the state, working with providers and reporting weekly data to the national Zika pregnancy registry. DSHS is studying past microcephaly data to understand the prevalence and patterns of this condition in Texas. DSHS has been emphasizing precautions, specifically for travelers and pregnant women, through an ongoing public education campaign and via www.TexasZika.org.

Texas has confirmed that an infant who recently died in Harris County had microcephaly linked to the Zika virus. The baby passed away shortly after birth and is the first Zika-related death reported in Texas.During her pregnancy, the mother was in Latin America, where she was infected, and the baby acquired the infection in the womb. Recent test results confirmed the baby's condition and link to Zika. The mother and baby are classified as travel-related cases, and there is no additional associated risk in Texas. Last month Texas reported the state's first case of microcephaly linked to Zika, also a Harris County infant. http://abc13.com/health/harris-county-infant-dies-in-first-zika-related-death-in-texas/1462611/

Palm Beach County has first case of locally-acquired Zika virus 7:16 p.m. Monday, Aug. 8, 2016 | Filed in: News COMMENTS 0  County IG: Westlake creation appears to violate no law Access to MyPalmBeachPost.com included for Post subscribers EXPLORE The first case of locally-acquired Zika virus has arrived in Palm Beach County. Gov. Rick Scott said Monday the infected person recently traveled to Miami-Dade County, ground zero for an outbreak of Zika acquired through domestic mosquitoes. State health officials are attempting to determine where the unidentified person contracted the virus. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) Before Monday’s announcement, the state said that 20 people in Palm Beach County had been infected while traveling outside the United States to countries — mostly in the Caribbean and Latin America — where the virus is widespread. South Florida has 17 cases of locally-acquired Zika, including at least 14 in a one-square-mile area in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood, a popular arts district just north of the city’s downtown. There have also been two confirmed cases in Broward County of non-travel-related Zika. Scott said Monday that state officials still believe local transmission of Zika remains confined to the Wynwood area. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took the unprecedented step last week of warning pregnant women not to travel to Wynwood. People who have visited Wynwood since June 15 have been advised by the CDC to put off getting pregnant for several weeks. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) Zika has relatively mild effects on adults but has been shown to cause microcephaly, a devastating birth defect that results in underdeveloped heads and brains in newborns. The Florida Department of Health has begun taking samples and questioning neighbors of the Palm Beach County resident with the locally-acquired virus. A health department spokeswoman declined to name the neighborhood where the Zika patient lives because “that information is part of an ongoing epidemiological investigation and is protected under Florida Statute.” “I assume that they have this person monitored and they’re spraying very aggressively in the area where this person is living to hopefully prevent any additional transmission,” said Tim Tellinghuisen, associate professor of immunology and microbial science at Scripps Research Institute. Zika is transmitted through bites from the mosquito species known as Aedes aegypti, which can also spread yellow fever, dengue and chikungunya. The Aedes aegypti — only the females bite — are mostly found in urban areas and can breed practically anywhere, including on a few droplets of rain on a fallen leaf. “The nice thing is this species of mosquitoes don’t travel very far from where they hatch — maybe 100 or 200 feet,” Tellinghuisen said. “The downside is that you’re dealing with a mobile population of people moving in and out of the area.” The state has tested 2,515 people for Zika, including 132 in Palm Beach County, said Sarah Revell, spokeswoman for the department of health. Aside from the 17 people who contracted the virus in Florida by local transmission, 357 travel-related cases of Zika have been confirmed as of Monday, including 55 involving pregnant women. With the new school year set to begin, Scott said Monday that the state will begin distributing mosquito repellent and educational material on Zika prevention to all public schools as well as colleges and universities in Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin counties. Tellinghuisen said that despite the growing number of locally-acquired and travel-related cases of Zika in the state, residents should not become overly concerned. “It’s nothing to really be panicked about,” Tellinghuisen said. “For most people, this virus doesn’t cause significant problems beyond a rash and a mild fever. We’re not talking about an Ebola-like situation.” Ebola is an often fatal disease that killed thousands during an outbreak in 2014 in West Africa. Staff writer John Kennedy contributed to this story. http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/local/first-non-travel-related-zika-case-reported-in-pal/nsCH3/

A request for clarification for the first 15 local cases in Florida produced an Aug 3 e-mail response from the Florida DoH which confirmed that only 12 of the first 15 cases were linked to the Wynwood area:

From DoH Aug 2 press release The new non-travel related infection is located outside of the one-square mile area in Miami-Dade County where the department has identified active transmission is taking place. The investigation is on-going and the department has begun door-to-door outreach and sampling in the area of the confirmed case. http://www.floridahealth.gov/newsroom/2016/08/080216-zika-update.html

The next day, Tuesday, Aug 2, the 15th local case was announced as a local transmission outside of the 1 square mile transmission zone. However, many were confused about the Wynwood linkage for the first 14 cases and reported the 15th case as the first local transmission not linked to the Wynwood area.