The state is receiving close to a million dollars to address the Zika virus.
Gov. Dannel Malloy said the state Department of Public Health will receive a $579,055 grant from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal announced an additional $400,000 in federal aid will come to Connecticut.
The funds will be used to support and enhance the state’s efforts to protect residents from Zika virus and monitor serious birth defects, like microcephaly, and other adverse health outcomes that the virus can cause.
Malloy said Connecticut officials have been actively taking steps to prepare for Zika, including a coordinated, cross-functional response across agencies.
“Preparation is critical, and this federal grant will be a big step forward in helping us reach our goals,” Malloy said in a statement.
He also called on Congress to approve a federal Zika aid package as quickly as possible.
Local
Commissioner Dr. Raul Pino, of the state Department of Public Health, said the federal funding will “greatly enhance” the Zika testing program at the State Laboratory and mosquito surveillance being conducted by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station.
He said it will also allow for a monitoring program through the Birth Registry to track infants born with Zika-related birth defects.
The Department of Public Health and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station will use some of the funds to continue implementing laboratory testing and enhanced mosquito surveillance portions.
In addition, funding will be used to build on the state’s existing Birth Defects Registry System to monitor for cases of microcephaly and other central nervous system defects that could be caused by Zika virus.
Funding will also be used to coordinate with the birth to 3 program and provide families with information on resources if they have child born with Zika-related birth defects, to disseminate prevention messages and materials to both providers and expecting parents and to monitor health and developmental outcomes of children born to women with positive or inconclusive Zika virus test results.
As of July 27, the state laboratory had tested 491 Connecticut patients for Zika virus, including 379 pregnant women. To date, 45 patients, including three pregnant women, have tested positive for Zika virus and all the patients contracted the virus while travelling to Zika affected areas in the Caribbean and Central and South America.
Connecticut has not seen any local transmission of the disease.
