CMS: $66.1 million in funding available for areas with active/local Zika transmission
Territories, states and tribal organizations with active or local transmission of Zika virus can apply for a portion of $66.1 million in funding to prevent and treat health conditions related to the virus, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced yesterday. The only areas with active or local transmission currently are American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Florida, meaning the funds are currently limited to those state and territorial health departments. According to CMS, $60.6 million of the funding will be directed to Puerto Rico, which has the vast majority of locally-acquired cases at 30,439. “This funding will accelerate efforts to provide access to important health care services for people, in particular pregnant women and children, living in areas with local active Zika transmission,” said CMS Deputy Administrator Vikki Wachino. Specifically, the funds will support health care services related to family planning, diagnostic testing, screening and counseling, medical care, case management and treatment, and improving provider capacity and capability. They are part of the Zika supplemental funding signed into law for fiscal year 2016.