SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – The U.S. surgeon general on Thursday urged Puerto Rico to step up its public education campaign against Zika as he warned that 25 percent of the island will be infected with the mosquito-borne virus by year’s end.
Dr. Vivek Murthy said during a visit to the U.S. territory that local officials need to boost mosquito control efforts and make contraception more accessible and affordable.
“We cannot afford to wait much longer,” he said. “I am deeply concerned about how quickly the virus is spreading.”
Puerto Rico has had 8,776 registered Zika cases, including 901 pregnant women, since the first case was reported in December. Eighty-eight people have been hospitalized, and 27 have been diagnosed with a temporary paralysis condition called Guillain-Barre that has been linked to Zika.
Murthy said his biggest concern was pregnant women because Zika has been linked to severe birth defects and other developmental problems. Like local officials, Murthy stressed that Puerto Ricans need to take the virus seriously, even though the extent of the infection is masked because eight out of 10 show no symptoms. However, those people can still spread the virus and should use repellent and long-sleeved shirts and pants, he said.