Zika and Latin America

The first Zika virus case in Los Angeles County was confirmed this week. A teenage girl contracted the virus while visiting El Salvador in November. She has since recovered from the disease. Public health officials are advising that pregnant women should delay trips to countries where the mosquito-borne illness has spiked in recent months. The Zika virus has been linked to severe birth defects. Several Latin American countries are calling for women to stop getting pregnant entirely. But access to birth control in these countries can be spotty or impossible, and abortion is banned entirely – or greatly restricted – in most Latin American nations.