Florida officials are now saying that four recent cases of Zika in the Miami area were likely transmitted by local mosquitos. 

This would be the first time the virus was transmitted through mosquitos in the continental U.S.

The head doctor for Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health said he wants a health fund, like a disaster relief fund, to develop vaccines against viruses like Zika.

“I am preciously close to the point where I don’t have any money and things are going to start slowing down,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, NIH Head Doctor, said.

He wants to bypass Congress and get the funds directly. There have been more than 1,000 cases of Zika reported in the continental U.S., with 39 in Pennsylvania.

“We know now that it’s mosquito, it’s sexual transmission mostly men to women but possibly women to men and a rare case of bodily fluids. It can also get into the blood supply, so once you have a prevalence of infection, you’ve got to screen the blood supply and prevent it from getting transfusion related,” Dr. Fauci said.

Fauci said protection against the insects is important.

“So right now, in the absence of a vaccine, the way you put a lid on this is aggressive mosquito control,” he said.

There are some key things you can do to protect yourself. Eliminate standing water where mosquitos can breed, use bug spray with DEET, and cover yourself up.

“If we do good mosquito control measures it is unlikely that we’ll have the disseminated outbreak that they have experienced in Brazil and that they are now experiencing in Puerto Rico,” Dr. Fauci said.

Fauci said mosquitos transmitting the virus in the continental U.S. is not a surprise. He said don’t worry and take precautions.