On 16 January 2016, Ministry of Health of Bolivia, through its National IHR Focal Points (NFP), notified PAHO/WHO of the first laboratory-confirmed cases of locally-acquired Zika virus infection in the country. The case is a 32-year-old pregnant woman from Portachuelo, Santa Cruz Department, with onset of symptoms on 8 January. She has no recent history of travel.

On 12 January, samples of the patient were sent to the National Center for Tropical Diseases for testing. On 14 January, the case was confirmed by polymerase-chain reaction (PCR) (viral genome detection).