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New York To Monitor Mosquitoes: Schumer Urges 'Stitch In Time'

Zika Mosquito
wikipedia.org

State health officials say the mosquito blamed for infecting people with the Zika virus isn't found in New York, but they plan this spring to check related mosquitoes in New York City, Long Island and the lower Hudson Valley.

Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker says the only U.S. cases involve people who traveled to Brazil and other places where mosquito bites have been linked to Zika infections. He says there's no need to isolate infected people.

Senator Chuck Schumer says action must be taken NOW before 'mosquito season' - "A stitch in time has to save nine and I don't want to see the federal government make the same mistake they made with Ebola. They were late to the game!  Once they came in they did a good job and Ebola didn't spread, but lots of people were scared and we lost a lot of economic value because of it."

For most folks, Zika symptoms are usually mild, with a rash and fever: it can't be spread by casual human contact.

The Health Department says there were nine confirmed cases in New York as of Friday.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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