Americans POTENTIALLY EXPOSED to Hantavirus back in the U.S.

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Story developing this morning, authorities now confirm one American has tested positive for hantavirus after the cruise ship outbreak, marking the first known US case. 18 passengers from the ship at the center of that outbreak are still under close observation. Local, state, and federal health officials also monitoring more than a dozen others who may have been exposed. National News Desk, Ahtra Elnashar joins us right now with the latest. Ahtra? Hey Jan, so among those 18 Americans who've just been repatriated, 16 are at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, and two are at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. And at last check, one of those two in Atlanta is symptomatic. Now, health officials say that the incubation period of this Andes strain of the hantavirus, uh which is the time between exposure and showing symptoms, is quite long, up to 42 days.

[00:00:53]Now, despite World Health Organization guidance, the United States is not requiring people considered high-risk contacts to quarantine and be monitored for that full 42 days. Of course, you'll recall President Trump pulled the US out of the WHO. Many health officials though urging these Americans to still follow this guidance, but say there's no need to panic.

[00:01:13]Let me be crystal clear, the risk of hantavirus to the general public remains very, very low.

[00:01:20]The Andes variant of this virus does not spread easily, and it requires prolonged close contact with someone who is already symptomatic.

[00:01:29]Just one of the ways officials say it's much different than COVID-19. So, now that all passengers are off that MV Handius cruise ship, the crew is sailing it back to the Netherlands. It'll take about 5 days, where the ship will be disinfected. On Capitol Hill, I'm Ahtra Elnashar for the National News Desk, America's News Now.