Minnesota: state Dept of Health monitoring one person who may have 'briefly been exposed' to a positive cruise passenger - flight contact, not on the ship

Axios Twin Cities (May 12 2026, Tier B verified via Playwright): 'The Minnesota Department of Health announced Tuesday that it is monitoring one person who may have briefly been exposed to a cruise ship passenger who tested positive for hantavirus.' MDH: 'We want to emphasize that the risk to the public remains very low.' Axios clarifies: 'The Minnesotan who was potentially exposed overseas was not on the ship.' Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), told ABC News the risk to the public remains low - but 'warned that the absence of a substantial response in the U.S. raises concerns about how prepared we are for future outbreaks.' Minnesota is the latest US state - alongside Washington (King County), New York, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia, Arizona, Georgia, California - to surface a hantavirus-exposed resident, all linked to the MV Hondius / KL592 contact graph.

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Author

Axios Twin Cities

Disease

hantavirus