Malaria is not new to the United States

People tend to think of malaria as a tropical disease, says Christopher Vitek, a medical entomologist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg. “But the fact of the matter is, historically we’ve had a fair amount of malaria transmission here in the U.S.” And the risk of transmission now is not zero. Officials in Texas and Florida are keeping an eye out for more cases.

Here are four things to know about malaria and the latest cases.

By Manuel Lluberas

Internationally recognized entomologist with over thirty years of experience on the business architecture, capacity building, and community engagement related to mosquito population management, WASH, and other public health matters obtained in four continents. Skilled in directing and managing time-sensitive projects and preparing and presenting oral and written briefings in English or Spanish to senior country leadership. Expert in setting up and managing time-sensitive disaster preparedness and response projects to protect survivors and relief and reconstruction workers in the wake of emergencies and disasters. Published over thirty, peer-reviewed technical articles on mosquito population management and emergency vector control, wrote a column for Malaria World, contributed to the publication of two WHO’s operational pamphlets, and presented numerous lectures in Spanish and English on these subjects. Awarded the Meritorious Service Award by the American Mosquito Control Association for contributions to public health entomology. Finalist to the Rear Admiral Charles S. Stevenson Award for excellence in US Navy Preventive Medicine. Certified as remote pilot of small, Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS or drone). Spanish to English simultaneous interpreter.

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