WASHINGTON—National Governors Association (NGA) Chair Utah Gov. Gary Herbert and Vice Chair Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe today released the following statement in advance of the White House summit on the Zika virus with state and local officials tomorrow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta:
“Governors and states across the nation are working to combat the Zika virus and control its spread in the United States. That is why after we met with the President last month as part of our annual Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C., we announced a partnership with the White House to fight the virus’s spread.
The goal of that partnership is to coordinate state, federal and local response and prevention efforts. Affected states have already designated a point of contact, and those points of contact will convene tomorrow at the summit.
Since the virus was identified as a threat, states have worked diligently to get ahead of this issue through a variety of tactics. Those include educating the public, surveilling the virus and mosquitoes, engaging clinicians, creating local action plans, developing rapid response teams and coordinating cross-agency response efforts.
The meeting tomorrow will provide an opportunity for states to share best practices with one another on how to address the virus and identify any deficits in response and preparedness at all levels of government, including state, federal and local.
Governors remain committed to working with the federal government to develop a coordinated response strategy, protect citizens and prevent the spread of the Zika virus.”
