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New non-travel related Zika case in Palm Beach County

Posted at 2:56 PM, Aug 08, 2016
and last updated 2016-08-08 18:13:16-04

RELATED: More Zika coverage

There’s another non-travel related Zika case in Florida and it’s a person from Palm Beach County, according to Gov. Rick Scott.

The Governor’s Office says the person recently traveled to Miami-Dade County.

The Florida Department of Health is trying to determine the source of the infection.

The Florida Department of Health says this does not mean there is active transmission of the Zika virus occurring in Palm Beach County. The Health Department says if it finds any area of concern in Palm Beach County, it will notify the public immediately. 

Palm Beach County Mosquito Control inspected the area where the infected person lives and  a spokesman said, "It was an extremely clean neighborhood, and no mosquitoes were present, juvenile or adult."

The Health Department suspects those with the non-travel Zika virus contracted it in area that is less than one-square mile in Miami-Dade County.

“With the announcement of this new case, and the upcoming new school year, I have directed DOH (Department of Health) and DOE (Department of Education) to closely work together to ensure students, parents, educators and district leaders have all the resources and guidance they need to combat the Zika virus," Gov. Scott said in a statement. 

“DOH, DOE and the Florida Board of Governors will begin distributing Zika teacher tool kits and materials for school districts, public state colleges and public universities to help educate students and their families. All districts and public education facilities will also be connected with their local health departments for the opportunity to train school clinic nurses and staff on Zika prevention," Gov. Scott said.

Governor Scott ordered several state agencies to take the following steps:

Distribute to each school district office, public college and public university posters, palm cards, door hangers and other education materials that can be displayed throughout campuses and sent home with students;

Send mosquito repellent to school districts, public state colleges and public universities in Miami-Dade, Broward, Martin, Monroe and Palm Beach counties;

Share with K-12 educators, principals, parents and other education stakeholders the Florida Department of Health’s Zika teacher toolkit, which includes messages and activities that can be incorporated into teachers’ lesson plans and used at home;

Issue informational Zika awareness and prevention materials to VPK and other school readiness programs throughout the state;

Provide each school district, public college and public university with contact information for the local health department, which can train school clinic nurses and staff on prevention and symptom identification; and

Encourage all education leaders to have protocols in place to promptly address suspected Zika cases.        

Six new travel-related cases of Zika were reported Monday with two in Miami-Dade County, two in Hillsborough County, one in Polk County and one in Leon County.

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