Dodd Fights the Bite
By Andrew Kosow
WASHINGTON, Oct. 17, 2002–Sen. Christopher Dodd (D – Conn.) is “fighting the bite” on Capitol Hill.
Dodd recently introduced legislation that would establish a grant program that authorizes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to match state funds that are allocated to fight the West Nile virus with federal money on a dollar-for-dollar basis.
“This health threat – like a storm – is capable of inflicting damage. We need to track it, combat it, and alleviate any pain caused by it,” Dodd said in a recent press release. “This measure provides a broad array of resources to fight this viral threat from all angles.”
According to the CDC, there have been 3,052 documented cases of West Nile virus in the United States as of Thursday that have resulted in 164 deaths. Connecticut has had 12 cases – none of them fatal.
At the forefront of research into the prevention of the West Nile virus is the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES) – a state-supported research institution that would be eligible to receive money from the CDC. “I fully support [the legislation],” the station’s director, John Anderson, said Thursday. He added that the CAES isolated the first case of West Nile in the United States in1999.
The CAES would receive an additional $350,000 in federal funds to combat the virus under the House version of the fiscal 2003 agriculture appropriations bill. The Senate has not passed its version but will take it up in a post-election session.
West Nile virus is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito, and can infect people, horses, many types of birds, and some other animals.
Most people who become infected with West Nile virus will have either no symptoms or only mild ones. However, on rare occasions, West Nile virus infections can result in severe and sometimes fatal illnesses.
According to the website of the Norwalk Department of Health – which uses the phrase “fight the bite” to describe West Nile virus preventive measures – citizens can minimize the risks of contracting the virus by draining collections of stagnant water (where mosquitoes tend to breed), ensuring that doors and windows screens are tight-fitting and using mosquito repellent.
In Norwalk, four crows and one mosquito pool at the Rowayton School have tested positive for the virus, but there have been no infections in the city, according to the website of the city’s Department of Health.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
