On February 1, 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the Zika virus and the recent surge of neurological disorders and birth defects thought to be caused by it constitute an international public health emergency. According to a press statement, WHO experts agree that a causal link between the virus and microcephaly, a condition that causes babies to be born with unusually small heads and damaged brains, is strongly suspected but requires coordination of “international efforts to investigate and understand this relationship better.”  They further cited the “patterns of recent spread and the broad geographical distribution of mosquito species that can transmit the virus” and the “lack of vaccines and rapid and reliable diagnostic tests, and the absence of population immunity in newly affected countries” as causes for concern. According to a news report, the emergency designation triggers action and funding from governments and NGOs around the world, “elevates the agency to the position of global coordinator and gives its decisions the force of international law.”