CDC Puts Rabies And Pox Virus Testing On Hold As Staff Dwindles
As part of an agency-wide review, the CDC has been reevaluating what pathogen tests it offers to help states that are not equipped to conduct them. Experts are worried about the shortage of clinical expertise and testing offered. By July, the rabies team will have only one person equipped to advise state and local officials, and the pox virus team will have none.
The New York Times:
C.D.C. Pauses Testing For Rabies And Pox Viruses
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has temporarily paused testing for rabies and pox viruses, the family of viruses that includes smallpox and mpox, according to an update to the agency’s website on Monday. The C.D.C. offers testing for dozens of pathogens to assist state and local public health laboratories that are not equipped to conduct them. The organization began evaluating its tests in late 2024 as part of an agencywide review. (Mandavilli, 4/1)
Other news about vaccines and outbreaks —
WUSF:
Florida’s Plan To End Vaccine Mandates Hits A Road Bump
Florida aimed to become the first state in the nation to end all vaccine mandates. But lawmakers failed to agree on a path forward. (Sheridan, 4/2)
CIDRAP:
COVID Vaccines, Boosters May Help Mitigate Long-COVID Risk In Cancer Patients
COVID-19 vaccination and boosting appeared to play an important role in protecting cancer patients against long COVID during the Omicron wave, researchers reported yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (Dall, 4/1)
CIDRAP:
RSV Vaccination Coverage Remains Low Among Older US Adults
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination coverage among older US adults remained low through the end of the 2024–25 respiratory virus season, according to a new study published in Vaccine. In 2024, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended RSV vaccination for adults aged 60 to 74 years who are at increased risk of severe RSV and for all adults aged ≥75 years. (Bergeson, 4/1)
CNN:
RFK Jr. Pledged To Fight Lyme Disease. Does That Include Supporting A Vaccine?
As secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, [Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] has promised to take on Lyme disease, which is an even bigger problem now than it was 40 years ago. At a roundtable discussion he convened in December with patients, clinicians and researchers, he pledged greater support for improving diagnostics and treatment. (Tirrell, 3/31)
CIDRAP:
End In Sight For South Carolina’s Measles Outbreak; Chicago On Alert After Potential Airport Exposure
The largest measles outbreak in the United States seems to be winding down. The South Carolina Department of Public Health says the state has now gone two full weeks without a new infection. Also, no one in the state is in quarantine or isolation for measles at this time, according to Brannon Traxler, MD, MPH, South Carolina’s chief medical officer. There have been 997 reported cases of measles in South Carolina since the outbreak began in the Upstate region in October of last year. (Boden, 4/1)
KFF Health News:
US Scientists Sequence 1,000 Genomes From Measles, A Disease Long Eliminated With Vaccines
This week, the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention posted online its first large tranche of advanced genetic data from measles viruses spreading last year. Scientists with knowledge of the operation expect the agency to post heaps more in weeks to come, revealing whether the U.S. has lost its hard-won measles elimination status. The CDC withheld the data for months as a team hit hard by mass layoffs and resignations sorted through the information. (Maxmen, 4/2)
CIDRAP:
Berlin Sees Rapid Rise In Locally Acquired Mpox Clade 1b Cases
A rapidly expanding cluster of mpox caused by clade 1b virus has been identified among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Berlin, Germany, according to a rapid communication published last week in Eurosurveillance. Of the 35 identified cases from December 2025 to last month, 34 were most likely acquired locally. The sharp increase in locally acquired infections marks a shift from historic patterns in which most mpox cases in Europe were largely travel-related. (Bergeson, 4/1)
