Prior to 2014, cases of Enterovirus D-68 (EV D-68), also called non-polio enterovirus, were extremely rare in the United States. The virus causes severe upper respiratory problems and can be life-threatening to children, particularly those prone to asthma.
Although EV D-68 was first noted in California in 1962, the incidence of infection with this particular virus spiked suddenly and precipitously in 2014.
In 2014, tens of thousands of undocumented children crossed the border into the U.S. and were distributed throughout the country without proper health screening. Many of these children came from countries that do not require preventive vaccinations. The Obama Administration insisted that the children posed no health hazards, but the sudden spike in EV D-68 in 2014 coincided with the resettling of those children. Forty-six states reported startling new diagnoses of the once-rarely seen virus, and at least five deaths were reported.
The virus can be carried by persons who are not sick or who do not have symptoms.
Similarenteroviruses cause foot-and-mouth disease, conjunctivitis (pink eye) and viral meningitis. They are contracted by close contact, touching objects or surfaces that have the virus on them and drinking water from contaminated sources. The virus can remain active in the environment for up to three weeks.
An editorial in Investor's Business Daily in October 2014 called on the Obama Administration to protect the health of Americans with proper and complete screening of undocumented children to protect the health, welfare and safety of American citizens.
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References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Sharyl Atkisson, CBS News reporter
Investor's Business Daily