Zika no longer an emergency to the World Health Organization

The mosquito-borne virus Zika is no longer considered to be an international public health emergency. Before anyone runs to play in a swamp without bug spray, the virus is still a chronic problem. "It is really important that we communicate this very clearly: We are not downgrading the importance of Zika," the WHO's Dr. Pete Salama told NPR.

Instead, Salama hopes that by categorizing Zika as a chronic problem, the WHO will be able to provide resources to fighting the spread of the virus in a long-term manner.

The virus still poses a grave risk to pregnant women due to a connection between the disease and microcephaly, a birth defect that causes an infant’s head to be smaller than normal and often leads to lifelong disabilities.

"That's why it's important that pregnant women not travel to places where Zika is spreading,” Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told NPR.

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