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Medicaid can be used to cover mosquito repellent to prevent the spread of the Zika virus, federal regulators told state and private Medicaid officials in a letter sent Wednesday. Coverage of repellent — when prescribed by a health professional — with the federal matching dollars given other Medicaid-covered treatments is the primary change in the new Department of Health and Human Services guidance. The letter is intended to clarify how low-income people covered by Medicaid can protect themselves so they don't contract the virus or get tested and treated in case they do. HHS alerted about 50,000 people involved in Medicaid plans. (O'Donnell, 6/1)

States can use Medicaid dollars to pay for Zika virus-fighting tools such as mosquito repellent and condoms, according to a new memo from the Obama administration. The five-page letter, distributed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Wednesday, offers long-awaited guidance for states looking to bolster their response to the Zika virus without extra funding from Congress. (Ferris, 6/1)

Services covered by Medicaid include the cost of mosquito repellent prescribed by a healthcare professional, as well as any and all diagnostic services recommended by a physician to detect for signs of Zika or microcephaly. States also have the option to cover the cost of family-planning counseling for men and women and provide various forms of contraception, including intrauterine devices and implants, to reduce the occurrence of sexually-transmitted infected cases. (Johnson, 6/1)

Even though leaders are on high alert, experts warn there are some underlying health care access issues in Texas that could make dealing with Zika difficult. ... the biggest worry right now is what this means for women who are pregnant or could get pregnant in the coming months. ... [Dr. Ted Held] explains when it comes to access to health care in Texas, there’s a big difference for women who are currently pregnant and women who aren’t, but could get pregnant in the near future. (Lopez, 5/31)

Florida will experience a “disaster” with the Zika virus if federal authorities don’t immediately provide money to help battle the virus, Florida Gov. Rick Scott said Wednesday. Scott, who had already visited Washington, D.C., in an effort to get Congress to act, sent a strongly worded letter to President Barack Obama asking the federal government to do something. The Republican governor called it “profoundly disappointing” that Congress has not taken “immediate action.” (Fineout and Kay, 6/1)

With two new Zika infections confirmed on Wednesday, including one in Miami-Dade and one pregnant woman in an unidentified county, Florida Gov. Rick Scott issued a letter to President Obama calling for immediate federal action to help state and local officials combat spread of the virus. Florida has confirmed 162 Zika infections this year, including 38 cases involving pregnant women regardless of whether they showed symptoms. Miami-Dade has reported the most cases, with 49 people affected this year. Broward has reported 17 cases. (Chang, 6/1)