CDC Says Plague Risk to U.S. Is Very Low After Siberia Worker Dies

A worker at a plague research lab in Siberia, Russia, recently died from a serious lung illness. U.S. health officials are not sure yet if the cause was pneumonic plague, a dangerous bacterial disease. The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Erica Schwartz, said on Wednesday that the risk to people in the United States is very low. Still, the government is taking steps to make sure no one brings the illness into the country.

Dr. Schwartz spoke at a health event in Washington, D.C., run by The Wall Street Journal. She said the CDC is working with several other government agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State. Together, they are keeping track of anyone who travels to the U.S. from that part of Russia. 'We are making sure that we understand exactly what that threat is,' she said.

The CDC also has a health station at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. Workers there can check on travelers arriving from the Siberian region. Officials want to make sure no one who might be sick enters the country without being noticed. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately say whether it planned to add more screening at JFK Airport.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said that only about 200 people from the Siberian region travel to the United States each year. That is a pretty small number. It is also worth noting that direct flights between Russia and the United States have been canceled since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. This means travelers from Siberia would have to stop in another country first to reach the U.S.

Russia's health officials said there is no danger of a plague outbreak spreading across Siberia. They said the cause of the worker's death has not been confirmed yet. An outbreak means when a disease spreads quickly to many people at once. Russian officials are still looking into exactly what made the worker sick.

U.S. President Donald Trump also weighed in on the situation. He told reporters that he does not believe the worker's death was caused by a bioweapon. A bioweapon is a germ or poison that is made on purpose to hurt or kill people. Dr. Schwartz echoed that calm message, saying the U.S. government feels confident the threat is very small.