No, Hantavirus Is Not COVID-26 And Other Misinformation Being Spread

InnovationHealthcareNo, Hantavirus Is Not COVID-26 And Other Misinformation Being SpreadByBruce Y. Lee,Senior Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Bruce Y. Lee, M.D., MBA, covers health, medicine, wellness and scienceFollow AuthorMay 18, 2026, 06:34am EDTMay 18, 2026, 06:35am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.With the MV Hondius cruise ship passengers being quarantined for 42 days—since it can take up to seven to eight weeks for symptoms to emerge after exposure to the Andes virus—the risk that the hantavirus will spread much further is quite low. However, the risk of misinformation and disinformation about hantaviruses will spread has been high. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty ImagesBy now you’ve probably heard about the hantavirus outbreak, you know the spread of the Andes type of hantavirus on the MV Hondius cruise ship that’s resulted in nine humans infected with three deaths so far. You’ve probably heard at least some of the—surprise, surprise—misinformation and disinformation that’s being spread as well. Yes, as the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated, there’s no shortage of people willing to twist public health info into pretzels for political and financial gain. There’s also no shortage of folks rather blindly passing along health info to others without verifying the info’s accuracy. And there’s even less of a check on such twisted information with public health information channels in the U.S. particularly in disarray right now. That’s because since 2025, the U.S. has withdrawn from the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been in upheaval, USAID has been dissolved and lots of scientific research funding has been cut. So, let’s address and clarify some of the inaccuracies that have been spreading way faster and farther than the Andes virus itself.No, Hantav...