Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
No Plague Detected Among Lab Worker's Close Contacts So Far, Russia And WHO Say
NBC News: Russia Says No Plague Found In Contacts Of Siberian Lab Worker Who Died
Plague had not been detected among close contacts of a worker in an anti-plague laboratory in Siberia who died last week, with 60% of the identified group tested so far, officials in Russia said Tuesday. News from Russia’s consumer and health watchdog Sunday that a female staffer at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East had died from a “pneumonia of undetermined” origin last week has raised public health fears worldwide. (Talmazan, 10/6)
The Hill: World Health Organization: No Sign Of Pneumonic Plague At Siberia Institute
The World Health Organization (WHO) said Monday there were no further signs of infections at the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia, following one researcher at the facility reportedly dying from the pneumonic plague. “No case of this dangerous disease has been recorded in the city of Irkutsk, Russian Federation,” Russian authorities said in an official response to a WHO request, according to Reuters. (Bhakta, 10/6)
Bloomberg: China Says It's Talking With Russia On Suspected Plague Case
Beijing made its first official comments on the suspected case of pneumonic plague in Siberia, saying it’s cooperating with Russia as health concerns intensify around the world. “China and Russia maintain close communication and cooperation in the prevention and control of infectious diseases, including the plague,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Tuesday in response to a question about whether Moscow has informed Beijing of the incident. (10/7)
NBC News: Trump Says Call Scheduled With Putin On Possible Pneumonic Plague Case In Russia
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he has a call scheduled with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the pneumonic plague, after the death of a female staffer at a Russian anti-plague lab that’s sparked public health fears worldwide. Asked whether he had spoken with Putin about the matter, Trump told reporters on the White House South Lawn that he had a “call scheduled” and that it would take place “very soon.” (Coronell Uribe, 10/6)
The Hill: State Department Reups Do-Not-Travel Warning In Russia Amid Suspected Pneumonic Plague In Siberia
The U.S. is refreshing its call for Americans not to travel to Russia in the wake of a suspected case of pneumonic plague in Siberia. In a post on the social platform X on Tuesday, the State Department said, “The U.S. Embassy is aware of press reports from the Irkutsk region of suspected pneumonic plague resulting in the death of an individual and of associated quarantine measures in, and closures of, hospitals in Irkutsk.” (Suter, 10/6)
The Washington Post: How Airlines Could Help Contain Russian Plague Using Lessons From Past Outbreaks
SARS, Ebola and covid highlighted role of plane travel in spreading — and tracking — outbreaks. (Frankel, 10/7)
In related news about fighting disease globally —
Politico: Trump Is Conditioning Foreign Aid On Deals
The government agency charged with combating disease outbreaks abroad is shrinking as President Donald Trump’s “America First” approach to foreign policy takes hold. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offices in Angola and South Sudan closed Thursday, with the office in Zimbabwe set to shut its doors at the end of the year. Current and former CDC officials told POLITICO they expect more than a dozen other foreign offices will follow in the next few years. (Paun, 10/6)
AP: Zambia Will Sign US Health Deal Without Committing To Share Patient Data
Zambia will sign a revised health agreement with the United States that will not include contentious clauses committing the African nation to share patient health data and specimens with the U.S. government. The five-year deal is worth $3.6 billion in total, combined funding from both countries for the African nation’s health services, Zambian Minister of Health Roma Chilengi told reporters Tuesday. (Zimba and Imray, 10/7)
CIDRAP: Some CDC Foreign Offices Shutting Their Doors As US Implements ‘America First’ Policy
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offices in Angola and South Sudan were shuttered last week, and the Zimbabwe office is slated to close at the end of the year, with a dozen other foreign offices expected to follow suit in the coming years, Politico reported today. Decreased CDC funding, State Department–issued operational limitations, and security problems are leading to the office shutterings, a CDC official told Politico anonymously. (Van Beusekom, 10/6)
Also —
AP: Kenya Confirms First Ebola Case In Man Who Traveled From Congo And Died
A Kenyan citizen who had been living in Congo before returning to Nairobi over the weekend became Kenya’s first confirmed case of Ebola and the country’s first death from the disease in the fast-moving outbreak, authorities said Tuesday, sparking urgent contact-tracing efforts to try to contain the spread of the virus. The man had been residing in Congo for the past seven years and fell ill about a month ago. He was treated at various hospitals before traveling by road to Kampala, Uganda, where he boarded a flight to the Kenyan capital, arriving on Saturday afternoon, Health Minister Aden Duale said. (Musambi, 10/7)
