Zika virus testing on Long Island

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - If you've traveled to the Caribbean, Latin America or any other part of the world where the Zika virus is widespread you can now be tested for the virus for free.

Dr. Victor Politi, president of Nassau University Medical Center, says the hospital has been getting many calls from people returning home with flu-like symptoms. Long Island has one of the largest Central American populations in the United States.

Your blood gets centrifuged at the hospital and then sent to the lab in Albany. It can take as little as 3 to 4 days to get results.

Miscarriages and birth defects have been linked to pregnant women who have contracted Zika.

Right now there is no vaccine to prevent or medicine to treat Zika. Doctors are advising women who have traveled to places where there's an outbreak to wait 3 to 4 weeks before trying to get pregnant.