Officials discuss ways of getting rid of Zika breeding grounds

HOUSTON – As we move closer to spring, Harris County and state experts want to make sure everyone is keeping the Zika virus top of mind.

“This is the virus from hell,” said Dr. Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine.

Hotez says the virus is capable of causing human tragedy but we do not know the depths of it yet.

“We don't really know what being positive for Zika virus really means,” he said. “What does that mean for baby? Does that mean the virus transfers 100 percent of the time, 50 percent of the time, 5 percent of the time?”

Hotez said they are playing catch-up, trying to determine the significance of positive tests.

County leaders say they want travelers to Zika-ridden countries to know about the importance of getting tested if they return with symptoms such as a fever, achy joints, no matter if they're male, female or currently pregnant.

“The recommendations become murkier when you aren’t talking about a pregnant woman,” Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services. “There's a lot of research recommendations that are going to help guide healthcare providers as we move forward.”

The problem is, the research and tests needed are expensive. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, said that's one of several reasons Houston should get congressional funding that President Obama requested last month.

“My intent, working with the mayor, these findings are secured, Houston has targeted money, and to work with the state to give flexibility to do with that money a number of things, which would include where they are harvested, they are harvested in trash,” Lee said.