Miami-Dade County's efforts to increase its Zika preparedness have cost the county nearly $30 million since last summer, with the state of Florida set to reimburse Miami-Dade for $19 million, according to a report from the Miami Herald.
Of the $29.7 million in funding used to combat the virus, $22 million has been spent on pest-control staff and insecticide — with insecticide amassing $5 million alone. The county is now looking to hire a full-time entomologist to help lead the charge against the mosquito-borne virus, which has caused the largest dip in tourism spending in the county since the Great Recession in 2008, according to the Herald.
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"We've kicked up our efforts a lot," said Carlos Gimenez, the Republican Mayor of Miami-Dade County, according to the report. "We're going to do everything in our power not to have a Zika zone. But a lot of that is out of our control."
In 2016, Florida experienced 285 cases of locally acquired Zika infections, according to the state health department.
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