The state will now start offering free Zika testing to all pregnant women who recently traveled to countries affected by the virus, regardless of whether they show symptoms, Gov. Cuomo announced Thursday.
The move comes three days after Cuomo directed the Health Department to provide the testing to symptomatic individuals who had been in the affected areas.
The department also issued a health advisory Thursday to local health departments, health-care providers and hospitals to further coordinate Zika-response efforts in the state. The advisory notified providers that they must report all potential cases to their local health departments.
“These actions will help us continue to ensure the safety of New Yorkers,” Cuomo said. “We are in constant communication with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and are taking proactive steps to raise public awareness, address any potential cases of Zika and protect the public health.”
So far, 11 New Yorkers have tested positive for Zika, including three in the Big Apple, state officials said.
All of the infected had traveled to countries where mosquito bites have been linked to the disease and a spike in cases of microcephaly, a rare condition in which a newborn’s head is abnormally small, causing brain damage.
The disease’s symptoms include headache, fever and rash.
The CDC is recommending that pregnant women abstain from sex or use condoms during their pregnancies if their male partners have traveled to or live in areas with active Zika virus transmission. Other women who have traveled to the areas also are urged to refrain from getting pregnant until tested.
Meanwhile, four major airlines — Delta, United, Air France and Lufthansa — have offered to reassign certain crew members to avoid Zika-stricken areas.
United said pregnant flight attendants, as well as those seeking to become pregnant, could switch routes, according to an internal Jan. 28 memo seen by Reuters. The airline’s pilots have similar options, a spokesman said.
Delta Air Lines flight attendants and pilots have been allowed to switch assignments since Jan. 17, the airline said.
Lufthansa and Air France said they already offered concerned crew members the chance to change shifts.
In another development, Spain said a woman who recently returned from Colombia is the first pregnant European diagnosed with the virus.
She is the seventh known person with the virus in Spain.
Health authorities have warned that the disease could infect up to 4 million people in the Americas and spread worldwide.
Here’s a crash course on why Zika is freaking everyone out: