The Americans have made it off the cruise ship and are in Nebraska being evaluated. Here are some of the latest Hantavirus updates for those who wonder where this is heading.
People who want to blow off Hantavirus because COVID turned out to be no big deal: COVID had a fatality rate of 1%, concentrated among the elderly. Hantavirus has an incubation period of up to 8 weeks and kills 30-40% of people who show symptoms. Whole different beast. It’s not…
— Megan McArdle (@asymmetricinfo) May 11, 2026
The libertarian is calling for the government to lock you in your house again, guys https://t.co/2uDvDgPJQa
— Magills (@magills_) May 11, 2026
So, clearly, the Libertarians are already losing their minds.
I’m certain as a “journalist” you are free to hide in your house forever and “work from home.”
— LibertyJ (@LibertyJen) May 11, 2026
The rest of us are not playing this stupid game again.
There is no chance that another lockdown will happen. Feel free to cower in your house but I assure that the vast majority will absolutely not do this.
— Physics Geek (@physicsgeek) May 11, 2026
Conservative Twitter is not convinced.
Can someone who is an expert in this space just keep it real with me and tell me if I should be worried about Hantavirus or not?
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) May 11, 2026
I've got 3 kids and the youngest is 4 months old, I don't know what to believe.
Meghan McCain asked the question straight out for the Moms in the audience.
Hi. It's a virus we know about that doesn't spread very easily but can cause outbreaks of a few dozen people. It's bad for those close contacts but highly unlikely to pose any threat to the general public. So no need to worry about this one.
— Neil Stone (@DrNeilStone) May 11, 2026
Meghan -- we've talked before and I've always been straight with you. I would not worry about your self or your lovely family. Just advocate for thr HHS folks to take it seriously and get the outbreak under control so we can all move on
— Ashish K. Jha (@ashishkjha) May 11, 2026
So, it seems it's most important to get the people exposed in the United States under quarantine, keep them quarantined long enough and then ensure it doesn't get out in the general public. .
#Hantavirüs
— Aftab Khan, MD (@aftab_usa) May 11, 2026
Let me be clear: Hantavirus is not going to be a pandemic. It is not even close to a COVID-like situation.
Public has concerns and legitimate questions.
We just need clarity & transparency from our Public Health Agencies!
the issue in a pandemic with that kind of mortality (especially if there was an outsize risk to children) wouldn't be getting people to comply with public health orders, it would be getting people to show up to work at municipal water treatment facilities https://t.co/AIsRwi3BFe
— Matthew Zeitlin (@MattZeitlin) May 11, 2026
No, the rational action would be to tell people to stop playing around third-world landfills littered with rat feces. Are the lockdown libertarians now just pretending to not understand how hantavirus is contracted? It’s so tedious. https://t.co/vUq7E3K9Qa
— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) May 11, 2026
This. There is no vision of a bird worth taking multiple lives.
