CDC says it is monitoring unknown disease in Congo
Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is closely monitoring an unknown disease that has killed dozens in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the agency said in a statement on Monday.
“CDC is monitoring the situation closely and engaging with DRC officials on what support the agency can offer,” the agency’s spokesperson said.
At least 1,096 people have been sickened and 60 people have died from the disease, the World Health Organization said Thursday in its most recent update.
This is the third time in the past few months officials have identified increases in illness and deaths in a different area of Congo, triggering “follow-up investigations to confirm the cause and provide needed support,” the WHO said in a statement on Thursday.
For example, there was a separate report of an unknown disease in December of last year in the central African country that was later attributed to illnesses from malaria and respiratory illnesses.
The symptoms for this latest cluster of disease include fever, headache, chills, sweating, stiff neck, muscle aches, multiple joint pain and body aches, a runny or bleeding from the nose, cough, vomiting and diarrhea, the WHO said.
Initial lab tests have been negative for Ebola and Marburg virus disease, the WHO said.
Around half of samples tested have been positive for malaria, which is common in the area, according to the WHO. Tests continue to be carried out for meningitis, and officials said they are also looking into food and water contamination.
The WHO said it has delivered emergency medical supplies, including testing kits and “developed detailed protocols to enhance disease investigation.”
“The WHO is supporting the local health authorities reinforce investigation and response measures, with more than 80 community health workers trained to detect and report cases and death,” the organization said.
(NEW YORK) — Measles cases are rising in the U.S. with infections confirmed in at least five states so far this year.
Cases have been reported in Alaska, Georgia, New York City, Rhode Island and Texas, mostly among individuals not vaccinated for measles, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In western Texas, an outbreak has grown to at least 24 cases according to an update published Tuesday from the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).
All of the cases are in unvaccinated people who live in Gaines County, which borders New Mexico, and at least nine of the patients have been hospitalized. Two cases are in adults aged 18 and older, while the remaining cases are among children and adolescents.
“Due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, additional cases are likely to occur in Gaines County and the surrounding communities,” DSHS said on its website.
Vaccine exemptions among children in Gaines County — the epicenter of the outbreak — have grown dramatically in the past few years. Roughly 7.5% of kindergarteners had parents or guardians who filed for an exemption for at least one vaccine in 2013. Ten years later, that number rose to more than 17.5% — one of the highest in all of Texas, according to state health data.
Individual schools saw similar jumps. At Loop ISD, located in the county, 13.08% of students between kindergarten and 12th grade received a conscientious exemption from at least one vaccine during the 2018-19 school year, During the 2023-24 school year, that figure rose to more than 47.95%, according to DSHS data.
Meanwhile, the Georgia Department of Public Health recently confirmed two additional cases of measles in metro Atlanta among unvaccinated family members of a case confirmed earlier this year in January.
Heath officials have been urging parents to vaccinate children who have not received the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) shot yet. The CDC recommends that children get two doses with the first dose at 12 to 15 months old and the second dose between ages 4 and 6. One dose is 93% effective and two doses are 97% effective.
Zach Holbrooks, executive director of the South Plains Public Health District, told ABC News on Tuesday that the district’s clinic in Seminole will be offering MMR vaccines through Thursday.
The cases mirror those seen across the country. The CDC says 14 cases have been confirmed nationwide so far, which does not include the updated cases in Texas or Georgia. Every single case is among someone who is unvaccinated or whose status is unknown.
Vaccination rates have been lagging in the U.S. About 93% of kindergarteners received select routine childhood vaccines, including the MMR vaccine, for the 2022-23 school year, according to a November 2023 CDC report.
This is about the same as the previous school year, but lower than the 94% seen in the 2020-21 school year and the 95% seen in the 2019-20, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The latter percentage had been the standard for about 10 years.
Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known to humans. Just one infected patient can spread measles up to nine out of 10 susceptible close contacts, especially if they are not wearing a mask or not vaccinated, according to the CDC.
Complications from measles are variable, ranging from fairly benign, such as rashes, or they can be more severe, including viral sepsis, pneumonia or brain swelling, or encephalitis.
The rise in cases come as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. seems poised to become the next head of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Kennedy has previously falsely stated that the MMR vaccine causes autism, despite many high-quality studies showing no such link.
During his confirmation hearings in late January, Kennedy said he is not “anti-vaccine” but “pro safety,” yet he refused to say that vaccines don’t cause autism.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
(GAINES COUNTY, Texas) — The number of measles cases associated with an outbreak in western Texas has grown to 259, with 36 cases reported over the last three days, according to new data released Friday.
Almost all of the cases are in unvaccinated individuals or in individuals whose vaccination status is unknown. Two cases have occurred in persons vaccinated with two doses, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). Breakthrough infections, when a vaccinated person is infected are rare, as the measles vaccine provides up to 97% protection after 2 doses.
At least 34 people have been hospitalized so far.
In the Texas outbreak, children and teenagers between ages 5 and 17 make up the majority of cases, with 115, followed by children ages 4 and under comprising 86 cases, according to the data.
DSHS said in its update that it expects more cases to be confirmed in the area and in surrounding communities.
Two likely measles deaths have been reported so far in the U.S. One is a confirmed death associated with measles, while the other has been definitively linked to the measles virus but the cause of death officially remains under investigation.
Gaines County is the epicenter of the Texas outbreak, with 174 cases confirmed among residents, according to the DSHS. State health data shows the number of vaccine exemptions in Gaines County has grown dramatically in the last dozen years.
In 2013, roughly 7.5% of kindergartners in the county had parents or guardians who filed for an exemption for at least one vaccine. Ten years later, that number rose to more than 17.5% – one of the highest in all of Texas, according to state health data.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed hundreds of cases in at least 12 states so far this year, including Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington
The majority of nationally confirmed cases are in people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown. Of those cases, 4% are among those who received just one dose of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) inoculation and 2% are among those who received the required two doses, according to the CDC.
Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known to humans. Just one infected patient can spread measles to up to nine out of 10 susceptible close contacts, according to the CDC.
Health officials have been urging anyone who isn’t vaccinated to receive the MMR vaccine.
The CDC currently recommends that people receive two vaccine doses, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective, the CDC says. Most vaccinated adults don’t need a booster.
Measles was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 due to the highly effective vaccination program, according to the CDC. However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years.
ABC News Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Tuesday marks five years since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the global outbreak of COVID-19 to be a pandemic.
Since then, millions of Americans have been hospitalized, and more than 1.2 million people have died.
Additionally, millions of adults and children are still feeling the effects of their illness and have been diagnosed with long COVID.
Here’s a look at the disease in the U.S. by the numbers.
Hospitalizations
In the last 28 days, ending about Feb. 16, 2025, about 3,800 Americans were hospitalized due to COVID-19, according to data from the WHO.
During the week ending Feb. 22, the most recent week for which data is available, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that just 1.3% of inpatient beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients as well as 1.3% of intensive care unit beds.
Additionally, during the week ending March 1, the rate of COVID-19-associated hospitalizations was 1.4 per 100,000 people. The peak for the 2024-25 season was 4.2 per 100,000 people during the week ending Jan. 4, which is much lower than the peak of 35.6 per 100,000 people during the 2021-22 season.
Deaths
Since the pandemic began, more than 1.22 million Americans have died from COVID-19 as of March 6, 2025, according to the latest CDC data. The U.S. crossed the 1 million mark on May 12, 2022.
During the week ending March 1, there were 274 deaths recorded from COVID, according to CDC provisional data. This is the lowest number recorded since the pandemic began.
Meanwhile, the age-adjusted death rate currently sits at 0.1 per 100,000 people, which has remained relatively consistent since spring 2024 and is among the lowest rates recorded since the pandemic.
By comparison, during the height of the omicron wave in winter 2021-22, the death rate was 53 times higher at 5.3 per 100,000. The highest-ever death rate was recorded the week ending Jan. 9, 2021, at 6.5 per 100,000.
Studies have suggested COVID-19 vaccines, combined with mitigation measures, helped save hundreds of thousands of lives in the U.S.
Long COVID
Long COVID is a condition that occurs when someone infected with COVID-19 is within three months of the initial diagnosis and lasts at least two months.
As of August 2024, a federal survey found that 17.9% of adults have experienced long COVID — equivalent to about 47.6 million Americans, according to 2024 U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Meanwhile, 5.3% of adults — equivalent to about 14.1 million Americans — reported they were currently experiencing long COVID symptoms at the time of the survey. Of those currently experiencing long COVID, nearly a quarter said they had significant activity limitations.
Another recent federal study, published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics in February, showed approximately 1.01 million children, or 1.4%, are believed to have ever experienced long COVID as of 2023 and about 293,000, or 0.4%, were experiencing the condition when the survey was being conducted.
Vaccines
In June 2024, the CDC recommended that everyone ages 6 months and older receive an updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine to protect against severe illness, hospitalization and death.
The updated vaccines target the JN.1 lineage of the virus, an offshoot of the omicron variant. There are formulations from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna available for those 6 months old and older and from Novavax available for those aged 12 and older.
The CDC, however, has previously stated vaccination coverage remains low, meaning “many children and adults lack protection from respiratory virus infections provided by vaccines.”
As of Feb. 22, 2025, only 23.2% of adults and 11.9% of children were vaccinated with the updated vaccine, CDC data shows.
Additionally, despite evidence showing the vaccine is safe for pregnant women, the CDC estimates that just 13.8% of pregnant women have received the updated vaccine.
