US Monitors For Hantavirus As WHO Expects More Cases But 'Not Another COVID'

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By Andria Park Huynh HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, Senior Medical Editor, B. Pharm. Last updated on May 12, 2026.

via HealthDay

TUESDAY, May 12 — Sixteen passengers from the cruise ship at the center of a deadly hantavirus outbreak are being monitored at the national quarantine center in Nebraska.

Two others were sent to a biocontainment facility in Atlanta because one was showing symptoms, officials said.

The passengers arrived back to the United States early Monday from the MV Hondius, which set sail from Argentina for Cape Verde on April 1, according to The Washington Post.

Of the 16, the first American who tested positive for hantavirus while abroad is in the biocontainment unit at the Nebraska-based National Quarantine Unit, officials said. The other 15 are in its quarantine unit.

"Quarantine is sort of like a very well-managed, air-handled hotel room, and the biocontainment unit is like a very well-managed, air-handled intensive care unit," Dr. Jeffrey Gold, president of the University of Nebraska, where the patients are housed, told The Post.

Previously, the facility has cared for patients with COVID-19 and Ebola.

Without therapeutic options to treat hantavirus, officials said, early intervention is vital.

Although three passengers from the ship died previously, officials are downplaying the risk to the public.

“We have this under control, and we’re not worried about it,” U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said.

Passengers who have returned are being monitored for symptoms including fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, respiratory issues and dizziness, The Post said.

The quarantine will last for 42 days, according to officials, although some passengers may be escorted to complete monitoring at home.

“No one who poses a risk to public health is walking out the front door,” said Nebraska’s Republican governor, Jim Pillen.

In all, 11 cases of hantavirus have been reported as of this morning. Nine have been confirmed to be Andes virus, with two others "probable," World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a briefing today.

Andes virus is only type of hantavirus that is known to spread person-to-person, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In all, 125 passengers and crew members from 23 countries were evacuated from the ship Sunday and Monday, officials said. A French passenger who developed symptoms on the flight home to France was said to be in "very critical" condition Monday afternoon.

While the threat of an outbreak remains low, Tedros said health experts expect more cases to emerge in coming weeks as "there was a lot of interaction" on the cruise ship before the first case was confirmed as infectious, The Post reported.

“At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak, but of course the situation could change and, given the long incubation period of the virus, it’s possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks,” he told reporters in Madrid on Tuesday, according to The Guardian.

Officials say the virus' danger to the overall public is low.

"This is not another COVID," Tedros said.

President Donald Trump also sounded optimistic.

"We think we’re in very good shape," he told reporters. "We’re very careful."

Sources

  • The Washington Post, May 11, 2026
  • The Guardian, May 12, 2026

    • Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

    Source: HealthDay

    Posted : 2026-05-13 02:44

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