Bluesky pages to follow to stay up to date on COVID-19 news:
https://bsky.app/profile/luckytran.com
https://bsky.app/profile/mikehoney.bsky.social
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https://bsky.app/profile/bemorelikeharper.bsky.social
(Disclaimer: my page is not strictly public health. It is a personal page.)
🕰️ May 17, 2026, 6:30 pm ET
Well, it has been a year since I last updated this page and that means there’s public health news to discuss. Let’s get started.
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In this week’s edition I will be covering the following:
There are lots of updates. For an overview of where this outbreak started please see webpage below for background and context.
https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2026-DON601
According to the WHO:
“As of 15 May 2026, 10 cases* (eight confirmed, and two probable cases), including three deaths (two confirmed and one probable), have been reported (CFR 30%). The contact from the United States of America that was previously reported as inconclusive has now been determined to be negative by serology.
*5/17/26 a case (a passenger on the ship) has been confirmed in Canada bringing to total to 11 (9 confirmed, 2 probable cases).
Of the eight laboratory-confirmed cases, three were genetically sequenced and identified as Andes virus. Since the last RRA published on 5 May 2026, two additional confirmed cases (France=1, Spain=1) have been reported among the passengers.
No secondary cases have been reported outside of the ship.”
This strain on Hantavirus, known as Andes, has documented person to person spread in particular conditions. The typical R naught or how many people can an infected person infect is less than one. Meaning infected persons tend to not infect others and the virus self-extinguishes. But there are occurrences, like this outbreak, where it does pass from person to person. The airborne nature of the virus has not been confirmed. Infection, according to research, still requires prolonged, close contact.
Additionally, the incubation period (the period of time between exposure to the virus and the onset of symptoms) ranges from 1 to 6 weeks, but some literature has stated up to 8 weeks. It is possible we could see more cases connected to the ship, but it will take time.
There are no approved vaccines, treatments, or therapeutics for this strain. The case fatality rate is cited to be as high as 50%, according to the WHO. Early supportive care and immediate referral to a facility with a complete ICU can improve survival.
18 Americans from the cruise ship are currently in back in the US.
16 of the 18 are in quarantine at the Nebraska national quarantine center.
2 passengers went to the Emory Hospital biocontainment unit in Atlanta, GA.
7 passengers who had left the ship returned home before the outbreak was identified.
16 People who may have been exposed during travel on flights where a symptomatic case was present.
For a total of 41 people being monitored by local, state, and federal health officials.
As of May 17, 2026, there are no confirmed cases in the US connected to this cruise ship outbreak.
Four Canadians connected to the cruise ship are currently isolating in the Island Health region, according to Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry. 1 of the 4 has tested positive for the Andes strain (on 5/17), confirmed by the Public Health Agency of Canada.
Read more here: https://www.1011now.com/2026/05/17/canadian-national-health-agency-confirms-1-positive-hantavirus-test/
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The risk to the general public remains low. The international and stateside public health response has been well coordinated.
Stay informed but stay ready. Get masks and mitigation strategies.
To stay informed, follow these experts, researchers, and practitioners:
On May 17, 2026, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). https://www.who.int/news/item/17-05-2026-epidemic-of-ebola-disease-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-and-uganda-determined-a-public-health-emergency-of-international-concern
The PHEIC declaration is an indication of how serious this situation is. WHO director, General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated "potentially much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported, with significant local and regional risk of spread.”
“The health ministry said there are already 246 suspected cases, including 80 deaths (only 8 cases have been lab confirmed), in the remote province of Ituri, suggesting the virus spread widely before it was identified. Two more cases, including one death, have been confirmed in Kampala, the capital of neighboring Uganda, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.” https://www.science.org/content/article/major-outbreak-rare-ebola-virus-species-northern-congo-alarms-scientists
This particular strain of Ebola, Bundibugyo, is rare. There are no approved vaccines, treatments or therapeutics for this strain of Ebola. The case facility rate is around 33%, according to a pooled case facility rate. See this article for more details on the Ebola case fatality rate meta analysis: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37992431/
But we must remember that the DRC has a long history of containing Ebola outbreaks using standard tools: isolating sick people, tracing their contacts, and quarantining them.
What can I say, the classics are back in style. Measles has had a resurgence in the past few years, after its eradication in the United States. The US has seen record cases in 2025-2026.
“Last year the nation saw 48 outbreaks and 2,288 cases for the entire year (2025). The United States could top that total in the coming months.” https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/measles/us-measles-total-nears-1900-51-new-cases
According to the CDC measles map: https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/index.html
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Next time I will discuss tick borne disease concerns and weather related updates.
For now, the Public Health Hottie is signing off. Stay safe!
🕰️ May 25, 2025, 5:30 pm ET
Back for a second entry. Lots to cover. So, let's get to it.