The World Health Organization declared the mosquito-borne Zika virus a "public health emergency of international concern" Monday, ABC News reports.
The virus, which experts have traced back to Brazil, has been linked to a birth defect in babies. Zika has spread to several Central and South American countries, and dozens of cases have been reported in the U.S. from people who had traveled to the region recently.
The designation, which WHO used for the first time since 2014's Ebola outbreak, allows the agency to allocate more money, resources, and research for the virus.
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