Miami-Dade Remains Under a Mosquito-borne Illness Alert for Chikungunya, Dengue, Malaria

With Spring Break 2026, travelers seeking safe, healthy alternatives to The Bahamas and Mexico will find Florida's pristine beaches and warm waters highly appealing.

However, Miami-Dade County on Florida's southeast coast is currently under a mosquito-borne illness alert issued by the Florida Department of Health (DOH) due to ongoing travel-associated cases of chikungunya, dengue, and malaria.

As of March 2, 2026, this alert was first expanded in July 2025, after local dengue cases were detected, and was reinforced by a locally acquired chikungunya case reported late last year. 

According to the Florida DOH's most recent Arbovirus Surveillance Report (Week 7, covering February 15–21, 2026), there have been 21 travel-associated chikungunya cases statewide, with 13 in Miami-Dade County, all linked to Cuba. In 2025, there was one locally acquired dengue case in Miami-Dade County, which began in December.

So far this year, there have been 14 dengue cases statewide, with 4 occurring in Miami-Dade County, primarily sourced from Cuba.

Additionally, there have been 6 malaria cases statewide, including 3 in Miami-Dade County.

These provisional figures align with earlier reports for 2026 (Weeks 1–5), which also indicated a steady accumulation of imported cases, particularly among residents returning from Cuba and other endemic areas.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that Miami-Dade's high volume of international travel continues to serve as a gateway for these pathogens. There is no specific CDC travel alert for Miami-Dade County, but the agency refers travelers to state and local health departments for domestic mosquito surveillance.

Florida's DOH-Miami-Dade and Miami-Dade County Mosquito Control are actively coordinating enhanced surveillance, larval source reduction, and public education efforts. Residents and visitors are encouraged to "Fight the Bite.”

Additionally, the CDC recommends that anyone visiting a disease outbreak area speak with a travel vaccine expert weeks before traveling abroad in 2026.

Updated resources from the CDC on these diseases can be found at cdc.gov/dengue, cdc.gov/chikungunya, and cdc.gov/malaria. Please note that case counts in this report are subject to revision.