“We’ve seen this in the United States before, and we know how to respond to it,” said Dr. David Fitter, the CDC’s incident manager for the hantavirus response.
WASHINGTON — The hantavirus risk to the American public remains low, the Centers for Disease Control said Thursday during a briefing about cases in the U.S.
CDC officials outlined their response efforts, including moving American passengers from the Canary Islands to a bio-containment unit in Nebraska and ongoing monitoring and testing for individuals who were potentially exposed to hantavirus.
“This is not a novel virus. This is a known virus,” said Dr. David Fitter, the CDC’s incident manager for the hantavirus response. “We’ve seen this in the United States before, and we know how to respond to it.”
Fitter spoke directly to the American public, saying, “To the American public, please know we are here to protect your health, and based on current information, the risk to the general population remains low.”
The CDC activated its emergency response operation in Atlanta and has more than 100 staff members working on the situation, Fitter said. The response includes teams that were flown to both the Canary Islands and to the Nebraska bio-containment unit, where passengers were flown on a private repatriation flight a few days ago.
Monitoring and testing efforts
Dr. Brendan Jackson, who is leading the CDC response team in Nebraska, said exposed passengers are undergoing extensive public health monitoring.
“These in-depth health assessments include asking each passenger about their exposure to the confirmed cases,” Jackson said. “The University of Nebraska team here is conducting regular temperature monitoring, symptom screening and general wellness evaluations.”
Hantavirus has a very long incubation period, Jackson said, which requires a 42-day monitoring window. That window started May 11, the day the ship departed. The long monitoring window also reflects caution around the particular Andes virus exposure.
Currently, officials say testing is only recommended for people who develop symptoms associated with hantavirus.
One passenger who was considered “mildly positive” is being retested in the United States after officials said earlier test results were inconclusive. “That test that we initially got, there was a positive and a negative,” Dr. Fitter said. “We wanted to redo the test to ensure that we had a test that was done here and we had the results.”
Officials said updated results could be available “in a day or so.”
Questions regarding quarantine
CDC officials said there are no federal or state quarantine orders. The agency is relying on voluntary cooperation and close coordination with local health departments.
“We’re taking a conservative approach on this,” Fitter said, adding that exposed individuals are being “encouraged to stay at their homes and work very closely with the state and local health departments.”
Officials did not release an exact number of people currently being monitored, citing privacy concerns.
The CDC has also published online guidance materials, including FAQs, fact sheets and monitoring guidance related to the outbreak.
Dr. Fitter said that much of the public health response happens behind the scenes.
“The work isn’t always visible,” Dr. Fitter said. “But it never stops. It’s deliberate, it’s coordinated and essential to keep our community safe.”