(Reuters) — U.S. health officials said on Monday (February 8) that a widespread vaccine to combat the Zika virus will likely not be available for years.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told reporters during a briefing at the White House that initial steps are under way but health officials believe it is “unlikely to have vaccine that’s widely available for a few years.”
“The good news is that Zika is what we called a flavi virus, a certain class of viruses, and we have successfully developed vaccines against flavi viruses like yellow fever,” said Fauci.
Fauci also said he was not expecting a large-scale Zika infection in the continental United States, and it was a personal choice for athletes on whether or not to attend the Olympic games in Rio De Janeiro this June.
“It’s very difficult to give advice to people who’ve devoted the last x number of years training for that, so that’s a very personal decision,” said Fauci. “What we can do, what the CDC and NIH can do is to just give them the facts and the evidence based information.”
On Monday, President Barack Obama asked the U.S. Congress for more than $1.8 billion in emergency funds to fight Zika at home and abroad and pursue a vaccine, according to the White House.
Most of the money sought by Obama, who faces pressure from Republicans and some fellow Democrats to act decisively on Zika, would be spent in the United States on testing, surveillance and response in affected areas.
“There are a number of ways in which these resources can be used, and we are hopeful that congress will recommend the urgency of this request and act quickly on it,” said White House Spokesman Josh Earnest.
Obama’s request to Congress includes $200 million for research, development and commercialization of new vaccines and diagnostic tests for the virus.
Zika, spreading rapidly in South and Central America and the Caribbean, has been linked to severe birth defects in Brazil and public health officials’ concern is focused on pregnant women and women who may become pregnant.
There have been 50 confirmed cases of Zika in the continental United States among people who had traveled to affected areas, according to federal health officials.
