Federal health officials on Friday warned pregnant women not to travel to trendy Miami Beach after Florida confirmed that the mosquito-borne Zika virus was active in the popular tourist destination.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also suggested that pregnant women who are especially worried about exposure to Zika- which has been shown to cause the severe birth defect known as microcephaly- might consider avoiding all of Miami-Dade County.
The new warnings represent a challenge to Florida's multibillion dollar tourism industry, with Miami Beach accounting for nearly half of visitor stays in the Greater Miami area. They also heighten concerns over Zika's spread in the continental United States.