Hantavirus Update: Two Maryland Residents Being Monitored Who Were Not On Affected Cruise Ship

BALTIMORE, Md. — The Maryland Department of Health is monitoring two Maryland residents for possible hantavirus exposure, according to a May 11 release. The residents were not on the M/V Hondius cruise ship that reported the hantavirus outbreak earlier this month, but were on a flight that briefly included a cruise ship passenger.

The Maryland Department of Health did not include any additional information about the individuals to protect their privacy and said the risk of exposure remains “very low.” There have been no confirmed cases of hantavirus in Maryland since 2019.

Hantaviruses are a family of viruses carried by rodents, and cases are known to occur in the United States. Although most diseases stemming from hantavirus are not known to spread between people, the disease associated with M/V Hondius passengers is the Andes virus found in South America. It is the only known hantavirus capable of person-to-person transmission, though such transmission is rare and generally requires close, prolonged contact with an infected individual or their bodily fluids. The incubation period ranges from four to 42 days, and asymptomatic persons are not considered infectious.

As of a May 13 report from the World Health Organization, a total of 11 cases and three deaths from the cruise ship have been reported. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is monitoring 41 people from around the country, and so far there are no confirmed cases in the United States.

In a May 12 update on its website, the CDC said “the risk of a pandemic caused by this outbreak and the overall risk to the American public and travelers remains extremely low.”