一篇关于 Zika virus 的阅读理解 The mosquito-borne Zika virus, which has spread to 22 countries in the Americas, is terrifying to pregnant women and their partners. The virus may cause birth defects in babies whose mothers were infected during pregnancy. In Brazil more than 4,000 have been born with abnormally small heads since last October, compared with fewer than 200 in a typical year. The response of several governments has triggered a debate about abortion and birth control which may outlast the outbreak itself. It started after some governments advised women to delay getting pregnant. Colombia, which has the second-highest number of infections after Brazil, advised women to wait six to eight months. Jamaica issued a similar recommendation, even though no cases of Zika have yet been reported there. El Salvador's government suggested that women should delay pregnancy until 2018. Panama warned women from vulnerable communities not to conceive. Some women find this advice rather bossy. Others say that governments have done little to help women control their fertility. A lobby group in New York notes that rates of teenage pregnancy in Latin America are among the world's highest, as 56% of pregnancies in Latin America and the Caribbean are unintended. Rates of accidental pregnancy are high because sex education is inadequate and birth control is hard to come by. Health workers are reluctant to prescribe contraceptives to teenagers or to women who have not yet given birth. If women are to avoid pregnancy, governments must inform them better and provide more access to contraception for both men and women. Some argue that the Zika crisis should prompt countries to liberalize policies that severely restrict abortion. In El Salvador, which does not allow abortion even if a woman’s life is at risk, activists are stepping up their campaign for a change in the law. A Brazilian newspaper argued that Brazil should end its ban on most abortions. Rather than calling on women to delay pregnancy, Brazil is sensibly concentrating its efforts on the mosquito responsible, which also carries dengue and yellow fever. The country had stamped out the threat by 1958 but let down its guard and allowed it to return. The health minister announced that insect repellent will be distributed to 400,000 expectant mothers. Some 310,000 health workers are teaching people how to keep mosquitoes at bay. Following WHO guidelines, Brazil advises women contemplating pregnancy on how to avoid getting bitten by mosquitoes . Women need facts, not fertility targets.