Miami's Disease Outbreaks Dampen Winter Vacation Plans

With enhanced transparency, U.S. states now reveal which diseases are currently impacting their communities. These insights enable vacationers to plan their next trip better when visiting one of Florida's world-class beaches this winter.

For example, the Florida Department of Health (FDH) published its Arbovirus Surveillance update #39 on September 28, 2024, disclosing various mosquito-borne diseases.

In Florida, 14 species of Anopheles mosquitoes have been found to transmit diseases to humans. 

As of the beginning of October 2024, Alachua, Bay, Broward, Holmes, Madison, Mantatee, Nassau, Orange, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Sarasota, and Volusia counties were under a mosquito-borne illness advisory.

Furthermore, Duval, Hillsborough, Marion, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Walton counties were under a mosquito-borne illness alert.

So far this year, these diseases have been detected in Florida counties:

Chikungunya: Nine chikungunya cases with an onset in 2024 have been reported in individuals with a travel history to Brazil (5) and India (4). Florida counties reporting chikungunya cases were Broward, Manatee, Miami-Dade, Orange, Pinellas, and Hillsborough.

Dengue Fever: 548 travel-associated dengue cases were reported, mainly by visitors from Brazil, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Region of the Americas. In 2024, 40 cases of locally acquired dengue were reported from six counties (Miami-Dade (24), Hillsborough (Tampa), Manatee, Monroe, Orange, Pasco, and Broward.

Malaria: In 2024, 57 cases of malaria were reported in individuals with a travel history to a malaria-endemic area, such as Africa (Nigeria). Malaria cases have been confirmed in Orange (8) and Miami-Dade (3) counties. In 2023, seven locally acquired malaria cases were reported near Sarasota.

Oropouche: In 2024, 86 Oropouche cases were reported in individuals with a travel history to an endemic area such as Cuba. Miami-Dade (51) leads all other Florida counties.

RSV: The Florida DOH segments RSV reports into five regions. As of October 2024, RSV activity and hospitalizations had increased throughout Florida, and there was one outbreak in Miami-Dade County.

And in 2024, no cases of Zika fever have been reported, but Zika virus transmission continues to be detected in Puerto Rico.

While not every travel vaccine is available in the U.S., the Florida DOH suggests everyone speak with a vaccine expert at least one month before travel about options to protect themselves from disease.

An example is Valneva SE's newly approved single-dose, IXCHIQ® Chikungunya vaccine, is available at travel vaccine clinics and pharmacies in October 2024.