Maryland will receive $1.4 million in federal funding to help it keep tabs on the Zika virus, improve lab testing capacity and control mosquitoes, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday.
The mosquito-borne virus was declared a public health emergency after being linked to cases of microcephaly, a severe birth defect characterized by small heads and brains. The virus also has been connected to Guillain-Barré, a rare syndrome that can cause temporary paralysis.
States such as Maryland, which has recorded 42 cases of Zika, already have stepped up efforts to monitor for the virus. Until recently, all of the cases recorded nationwide – more than 1,400 including 400 pregnant women – have been related to people traveling to heavily infected countries or to sexual contact.
Authorities are now looking into a case in Florida that may have resulted directly from a mosquito bite. Another case of infection in a person who was caring for an infected family member in Utah is unexplained.
President Obama requested $1.9 billion in funding from Congress for a more robust response, including vaccine development, but the budget hasn't been approved.
Instead, the new funding comes from a pot of money intended for infectious disease response generally. Other funding is slated to combat antibiotic resistance, to prevent food-borne disease and tracking of vaccine-preventable disease.
In all, states received about $60 million for Zika, the CDC reported.
"Our local, state and territorial health departments are on the front lines in the fight against Zika, and though the necessary funding that is needed isn't yet available, we cannot wait to provide this essential support," said Dr. Tom Frieden, CDC director, in a statement. "These CDC funds will strengthen state and territorial capacity to respond to Zika virus, an increasingly concerning public health threat."