Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Fly Bite-Induced Shamonda Virus Infects First Human In France
ABC News: France Reports 1st Known Human Case Of Shamonda Virus
France has reported the first documented human case of the Shamonda virus, which was previously detected only in animals. The patient was immunocompromised and died, health officials said. The Shamonda virus is spread by tiny biting flies, which are known as midges. In animals, the virus has been shown to cause fever, diarrhea, reduced milk production, and reproductive disorders, including abortions and fetal malformations, according to the World Organization for Animal Health. (Benadjaoud, 10/22)
More global health news —
AP: Ebola Patients From Kenya And Nigeria May Have Met At Uganda Airport
The first Ebola patients confirmed in Kenya and Nigeria might have crossed paths at an airport in Uganda earlier this month, African health officials said Thursday as they race to trace and slow an outbreak that has spread to several African countries. Both patients are known to have traveled through Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport on Oct. 3, said Dr. Wessam Mankoula, head of emergency preparedness and response at the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Adetayo, 10/23)
The Hill: Foreign Travelers Will Face New CDC Certification Requirements
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will require foreign travelers heading to the U.S. to certify they have not traveled to the Congo in the last three weeks amid a widespread outbreak of Ebola. Reuters first reported on the new requirement Thursday, citing a CDC memo. The CDC initially held rules barring any travelers — including U.S. citizens — from the Congo within 21 days before departure. (Mancini, 10/22)
The Hill: Lawmakers Question Ethics Of CDC Hepatitis B Trial In Africa
Top Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee demanded answers Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about the agency’s funding of a controversial hepatitis B clinical trial in Guinea-Bissau. The CDC awarded $1.6 million last year to Danish researchers to conduct the study in Guinea-Bissau, a small country in West Africa where nearly 1 in 5 people are infected with the hepatitis B virus. Guinea-Bissau doesn’t vaccinate against hepatitis B at birth, but the country plans to institute the birth dose by 2028. (Weixel, 10/22)
CIDRAP: Epidemics Linked To Loss Of Health Workers, With Poorer Nations Hardest Hit
Infectious disease specialists gathered for an annual infectious disease conference in Washington, DC, today rallied to protest funding cuts to HIV research, prevention, and treatment. “Nothing has hurt me as much in the last year as the cruel and devastating cuts and attempts to silence us around HIV care, advocacy and research,” said Jeanne Marrazzo, MD, MPH, CEO of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), one of the organizers of the IDWeek 2026 conference. (Szabo, 10/21)
On dengue, salmonella, bird flu, and CWD —
MedPage Today: CDC Issues Emergency Response For Florida Dengue Outbreak
The CDC has issued a Level 3 emergency response for dengue outbreaks in Florida and another U.S. territory, the agency's eighth emergency response activation this year. Florida is in the midst of its largest dengue outbreak in decades, with 745 cases this year; 425 of those have been locally acquired, and most are concentrated in the Tampa area. That figure marks the largest dengue outbreak in the continental U.S. since 1935. (Fiore, 10/22)
The Washington Post: More Than 27 People Sick After Salmonella Outbreak From Raw Oysters
Federal health officials are investigating a multistate salmonella outbreak that has been linked to raw oysters and sickened 27 people across a dozen states. Five of the cases have involved hospitalizations, health officials said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said an investigation is underway of infections linked to raw oysters harvested by the Little Wicomico Oyster Co. from the Little Wicomico River’s harvest area in Virginia. (Hedgpeth, 10/22)
ProPublica: Bird Flu Is Raging On A Mink Farm. It Could Spark A Human Pandemic, Experts Say, But Officials Won’t Act
The strain of bird flu that’s ripped through American barns for the last four years has killed two people who caught it from sick animals. But as far as anyone can tell, humans can’t spread it. The virus has remained a true “bird” flu, tailored to attach to avian cells, not invade human throats and noses, where coughing and sneezing reliably spew droplets. Under the right conditions, however, that could change. A single mutation could give the bird flu a foothold in people and spark a pandemic that experts fear could be deadlier than COVID-19. (Lash and Leopo, 10/23)
CIDRAP: CWD Digest: Disease Reaches New Areas In Wyoming, Wisconsin, As Michigan Detects Case On Farm
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) has spread to a new deer hunt area in Wyoming, another Wisconsin county, and a Michigan farm, state officials announced this week. (Van Beusekom, 10/22)
On the 'zero dose' of the MMR vaccine —
CIDRAP: As Measles Soars In Pennsylvania, Some Parents Are Vaccinating Their Babies Early
Laura Esch was in disbelief. Her local paper was reporting that Pennsylvania had its first two measles-related deaths in 35 years. Both were infants. The story included a video of Gov. Josh Shapiro speaking at the hospital where she had delivered her younger daughter, Lucy, just a few months prior. It felt like the COVID-19 pandemic all over again, Esch told CIDRAP News. Only this time she was a mom. (Boden, 10/22)
