SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - With two new non-travel related cases of the Zika virus, both which may have been contracted in Miami-Dade or Broward counties, the FDA is requesting that all blood donation establishments in Miami-Dade and Broward stop collecting blood immediately.
According to the FDA, in consideration of the possibility of an emerging local outbreak of Zika, these donation sites must cease collecting blood until each establishment begins testing each individual unit of blood collected for Zika virus, or until the blood establishments implement the use of an approved or investigational pathogen inactivation technology.
On Thursday, FDA officials announced they are currently conducting an epidemiological investigation into four non-travel related cases of Zika virus, two of each are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Emilio Freeman donates blood regularly, but blood centers like OneBlood will likely reject any donation as a precaution. “We have to be able to contribute and help out,” he said. “Not enough people really know about how severe this problem could be.”
“We have to avoid mosquito bites, folks,” said one woman.
The FDA released a statement that said in part, “FDA is requesting that all blood establishments in Miami-Dade County and Broward County cease collecting blood immediately until the blood establishments implement testing of each individual unit of blood collected in the two counties with an available investigational donor screening tests for Zika virus RNA or until the blood establishment implement the use of an approved or investigational pathogen inactivation technology.”
These cases may be the first cases of local Zika virus transmission by mosquitoes in the continental United States.
Zika has been dubbed one of the most alarming health scares in 2016 after four cases in two weeks were possibly spread by local mosquitos.
Two new travel-related cases of Zika also emerged, Thursday afternoon, both involving pregnant women.
Freeman said he thinks establishments need to have a back up plan for worst case scenarios, like the mass shooting in Orlando, where blood was needed to be donated.
“Before you start restricting people from being able to donate blood, you should have a game plan in place,” he said.
OneBlood reportedly has a plan in case blood is needed. According to a flyer they have distributed, they will begin to test for the virus for anyone who requests the test in all of the donated blood.
In a statement, Dr. Peter Marks, Director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said the FDA has been working overtime to develop tests and vaccines.
“In addition to protecting the nation’s blood supply, the FDA is prioritizing the development of diagnostic tests that may be useful for identifying infection with the virus, helping to facilitate the development and evaluation of investigational vaccines and therapeutics, and reviewing technology that may help suppress populations of the mosquitoes that can spread the virus.”
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