CDC quantifies current impact of Zika in US

From the AMA Morning Rounds, 6/17/2016

ABC World News Tonight (6/16, story 10, 0:10, Muir) reported CDC revealed Thursday there are 234 confirmed cases of Zika in pregnant women in the US, with six of those women’s babies showing Zika-related defects.

NBC Nightly News (6/16, story 10, 0:25, Holt) reported that the CDC said three babies were born with birth defects caused by the virus, while birth defects were also seen in “three other pregnancies that ended.” NBC noted that all 234 cases were contracted outside the US.

The Washington Post (6/16, Sun) “To Your Health” reports the announcement was “the first time the agency has provided a total number of Zika-related birth defects since the start of the U.S. response earlier this year.”

House could vote on a Zika compromise next week Roll Call (6/16) reports that the House “may vote on a conference report addressing a response to the Zika virus outbreak next week if Senate and House negotiators produce a final package,” according to House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. The House “is scheduled to work just one more week in June, leaving little time for negotiators to bridge wide differences in each chamber’s Zika spending proposal before their target date of July 1.”

However, The Atlantic (6/15, Kelly) reports that “the end of the debate is not yet in sight,” as lawmakers “are not just divided over the levels of funding,” but also over how such aid “should be funded.” According to the Atlantic, “it’s not entirely clear to what degree conferees will concede, particularly House Republicans, whose caucus contains some of the most fiscally hawkish members on the Hill.”

For more information, visit the AMA’s Zika Virus Resource Center.