Thousands infected in China as mosquito-borne virus sparks pandemic fears
The chikungunya virus has rapidly spread to about 8,000 patients in just four weeks, mainly across China's Guangdong province to the south, with the city of Foshan hit the hardest, according to the New York Times.
But Hong Kong's first case was confirmed on Monday, and the increasingly worrisome situation is stoking fears of a potential pandemic.
Infected residents are being sent to 'quarantine wards' in hospitals where they're placed in beds covered by mosquito nets. They have to then remain there for a week, unless they test negative beforehand.
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Nearby cities at one point also forced people entering from Foshan to quarantine themselves for 14 days but have since lifted that order.
The drastic measures show just how jittery Chinese officials are about the potential for another major health crisis, considering Chikungunya is typically not deadly and not spread between humans but is transmitted by the bites of infected Aedes mosquitoes.
In a massive effort to curb its further spread, masked Chinese soldiers have been dousing public spaces with insecticide, and authorities have begun releasing 'elephant mosquitoes' whose larvae devour the smaller, virus-carrying mosquitoes.
Thousands of mosquito-eating fish also have been released into Foshan's public ponds.
Officials have urged those showing any symptoms to be tested for the virus, and residents have been ordered to remove stagnant water, where the mosquitoes breed, from their homes — and threatened with fines up to $1,400 if they refuse to comply, according to the BBC.
At least five homes have had their electricity cut for not co-operating, the Times reported.
Authorities are even using drones to detect potential hot spots of stagnant water.
There is no known cure for the virus, which has symptoms that can be agonising and include fever, joint pain, headache, muscle pain, swelling and rash, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Officials in China said 95 per cent of the patients hospitalised with the virus have been discharged within seven days, but the infection rate has the region on high alert with 3,000 cases reported in area in just the past week alone, according to the BBC.
The swift response by the Chinese government has its citizens online comparing the outbreak to the COVID-19 pandemic, which exploded in 2020 and killed millions of people. US officials claim the coronavirus was accidentally released from a Chinese laboratory.
China imposed some of the strictest restrictions in the world at the time, including major lockdowns, forced testing and social-distancing rules.
In Guangdong, authorities have vowed to take 'decisive and forceful measures' to halt the spread of chikungunya, which is not commonly found as far north as in China.
Ren Chao, a professor at the University of Hong Kong studying climate change's impact on Chikungunya, told the paper that infected mosquitoes 'can spread and reproduce in even the smallest pool of water, like a Coke bottle cap.'
The CDC on Friday issued a Level 2 travel notice for those going to China as the disease continues to spread. Level 2, which tells travellers to 'practice enhanced precautions,' is on a warning scale of four, with four urging people to 'avoid all travel' to the region.
The agency has urged Americans travelling there to get vaccinated for chikungunya. There are two vaccines approved for use against it in the US.
The current surge began in early 2025, with major outbreaks in the same Indian Ocean area.
This story first appeared in the New York Post and was republished with permission.
Originally published as Thousands infected in China as mosquito-borne virus sparks pandemic fears
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The Advertiser
15 hours ago
- The Advertiser
'Big win': staffing victory for Calvary Mater hospital in a NSW first
STAFFING at one of Newcastle's largest hospitals will be covered by statewide mandates, closing a loophole its staff had slammed as a dangerous omission. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park on Thursday confirmed planning has begun to bring safe staffing levels to the Calvary Mater's emergency department. Introducing the changes will make the hospital the first affiliated health organisation to come under reforms already rolling out across 30 public hospital emergency departments, including the John Hunter. In May, the Newcastle Herald reported nurses were calling on the state government to expand the plan rather than make the Mater the exception among Hunter hospitals. Camilla Smith, the Mater branch secretary for the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association, said on Thursday the news was welcomed. She said there would "definitely be a bottle of champagne" to celebrate. "We're obviously all ecstatic and it couldn't come at a better time with just the surging and the flu and COVID intake and just generally people being sicker," she said. "We're finally getting acknowledged in staffing levels for the work that we do." "It's just been such a massive battle. When you're in the thick of it, you think it's not going to happen." Ms Smith said there remained issues, including "the highest number of code black incidents in the state", but expanding the reform to include the Mater would stop its resources falling behind. "People who work at the Calvary love it and they don't want to go, but when you're working under less staffing levels than every other hospital in your area, you've got to really love your job," she said. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the Safe Staffing Level reforms introduce minimum staffing levels, which the state government says will "result in more nurses employed in hospitals right across the state". "Importantly, this reform will deliver improved nursing numbers to provide care for patients while supporting our frontline healthcare staff," he said. In the public sector the rules dictate a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied emergency department resuscitation beds on all shifts, and one nurse per three generally occupied treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts. The Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce - incorporating local health districts, NSW Health and NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association representatives - is preparing to work out the full-time equivalent staffing required at the Calvary Mater, the state government said. Calvary Mater emergency department nurse unit manager Andrew Adams said extra staff would improve morale on the ground, as well as boosting safety and capacity for care. He said staff would likely feel safer with more colleagues due to the changes, having faced an increase in staff injuries and assaults. "We're one of the bigger EDs in the local health district, and we do see a lot of patients of high acuity," he said. "[With the extra staffing] our high-risk patients that we have in the department will be provided the safe nursing care that they actually deserve and we haven't been able to provide." Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said on Thursday it was "a big win" to have the Mater brought under the umbrella. "Calvary Mater Newcastle is not just a hospital," she said. "It's a vital part of the Hunter's health network and today's announcement means better care for every patient who walks through its doors. "The Hunter community has fought hard for a fairer health system, and this is the result of that advocacy. Real reform that strengthens patient care and supports our incredible nurses. "Safe Staffing Levels aren't just numbers on a roster, they're the difference between patients being seen sooner, being treated faster and having more time with the professionals who care for them." Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery said the fierce advocacy of front-line staff had paid off. "I want to thank the nurses of the Mater Hospital, in particular branch secretary Camilla Smith, for their patience and strong advocacy in seeing this Safe Staffing Level expansion," Ms Hornery said. "I also want to thank Minister Park for his commitment to expanding these reforms to all hospitals in the Wallsend electorate." STAFFING at one of Newcastle's largest hospitals will be covered by statewide mandates, closing a loophole its staff had slammed as a dangerous omission. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park on Thursday confirmed planning has begun to bring safe staffing levels to the Calvary Mater's emergency department. Introducing the changes will make the hospital the first affiliated health organisation to come under reforms already rolling out across 30 public hospital emergency departments, including the John Hunter. In May, the Newcastle Herald reported nurses were calling on the state government to expand the plan rather than make the Mater the exception among Hunter hospitals. Camilla Smith, the Mater branch secretary for the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association, said on Thursday the news was welcomed. She said there would "definitely be a bottle of champagne" to celebrate. "We're obviously all ecstatic and it couldn't come at a better time with just the surging and the flu and COVID intake and just generally people being sicker," she said. "We're finally getting acknowledged in staffing levels for the work that we do." "It's just been such a massive battle. When you're in the thick of it, you think it's not going to happen." Ms Smith said there remained issues, including "the highest number of code black incidents in the state", but expanding the reform to include the Mater would stop its resources falling behind. "People who work at the Calvary love it and they don't want to go, but when you're working under less staffing levels than every other hospital in your area, you've got to really love your job," she said. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the Safe Staffing Level reforms introduce minimum staffing levels, which the state government says will "result in more nurses employed in hospitals right across the state". "Importantly, this reform will deliver improved nursing numbers to provide care for patients while supporting our frontline healthcare staff," he said. In the public sector the rules dictate a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied emergency department resuscitation beds on all shifts, and one nurse per three generally occupied treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts. The Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce - incorporating local health districts, NSW Health and NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association representatives - is preparing to work out the full-time equivalent staffing required at the Calvary Mater, the state government said. Calvary Mater emergency department nurse unit manager Andrew Adams said extra staff would improve morale on the ground, as well as boosting safety and capacity for care. He said staff would likely feel safer with more colleagues due to the changes, having faced an increase in staff injuries and assaults. "We're one of the bigger EDs in the local health district, and we do see a lot of patients of high acuity," he said. "[With the extra staffing] our high-risk patients that we have in the department will be provided the safe nursing care that they actually deserve and we haven't been able to provide." Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said on Thursday it was "a big win" to have the Mater brought under the umbrella. "Calvary Mater Newcastle is not just a hospital," she said. "It's a vital part of the Hunter's health network and today's announcement means better care for every patient who walks through its doors. "The Hunter community has fought hard for a fairer health system, and this is the result of that advocacy. Real reform that strengthens patient care and supports our incredible nurses. "Safe Staffing Levels aren't just numbers on a roster, they're the difference between patients being seen sooner, being treated faster and having more time with the professionals who care for them." Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery said the fierce advocacy of front-line staff had paid off. "I want to thank the nurses of the Mater Hospital, in particular branch secretary Camilla Smith, for their patience and strong advocacy in seeing this Safe Staffing Level expansion," Ms Hornery said. "I also want to thank Minister Park for his commitment to expanding these reforms to all hospitals in the Wallsend electorate." STAFFING at one of Newcastle's largest hospitals will be covered by statewide mandates, closing a loophole its staff had slammed as a dangerous omission. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park on Thursday confirmed planning has begun to bring safe staffing levels to the Calvary Mater's emergency department. Introducing the changes will make the hospital the first affiliated health organisation to come under reforms already rolling out across 30 public hospital emergency departments, including the John Hunter. In May, the Newcastle Herald reported nurses were calling on the state government to expand the plan rather than make the Mater the exception among Hunter hospitals. Camilla Smith, the Mater branch secretary for the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association, said on Thursday the news was welcomed. She said there would "definitely be a bottle of champagne" to celebrate. "We're obviously all ecstatic and it couldn't come at a better time with just the surging and the flu and COVID intake and just generally people being sicker," she said. "We're finally getting acknowledged in staffing levels for the work that we do." "It's just been such a massive battle. When you're in the thick of it, you think it's not going to happen." Ms Smith said there remained issues, including "the highest number of code black incidents in the state", but expanding the reform to include the Mater would stop its resources falling behind. "People who work at the Calvary love it and they don't want to go, but when you're working under less staffing levels than every other hospital in your area, you've got to really love your job," she said. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the Safe Staffing Level reforms introduce minimum staffing levels, which the state government says will "result in more nurses employed in hospitals right across the state". "Importantly, this reform will deliver improved nursing numbers to provide care for patients while supporting our frontline healthcare staff," he said. In the public sector the rules dictate a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied emergency department resuscitation beds on all shifts, and one nurse per three generally occupied treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts. The Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce - incorporating local health districts, NSW Health and NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association representatives - is preparing to work out the full-time equivalent staffing required at the Calvary Mater, the state government said. Calvary Mater emergency department nurse unit manager Andrew Adams said extra staff would improve morale on the ground, as well as boosting safety and capacity for care. He said staff would likely feel safer with more colleagues due to the changes, having faced an increase in staff injuries and assaults. "We're one of the bigger EDs in the local health district, and we do see a lot of patients of high acuity," he said. "[With the extra staffing] our high-risk patients that we have in the department will be provided the safe nursing care that they actually deserve and we haven't been able to provide." Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said on Thursday it was "a big win" to have the Mater brought under the umbrella. "Calvary Mater Newcastle is not just a hospital," she said. "It's a vital part of the Hunter's health network and today's announcement means better care for every patient who walks through its doors. "The Hunter community has fought hard for a fairer health system, and this is the result of that advocacy. Real reform that strengthens patient care and supports our incredible nurses. "Safe Staffing Levels aren't just numbers on a roster, they're the difference between patients being seen sooner, being treated faster and having more time with the professionals who care for them." Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery said the fierce advocacy of front-line staff had paid off. "I want to thank the nurses of the Mater Hospital, in particular branch secretary Camilla Smith, for their patience and strong advocacy in seeing this Safe Staffing Level expansion," Ms Hornery said. "I also want to thank Minister Park for his commitment to expanding these reforms to all hospitals in the Wallsend electorate." STAFFING at one of Newcastle's largest hospitals will be covered by statewide mandates, closing a loophole its staff had slammed as a dangerous omission. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park on Thursday confirmed planning has begun to bring safe staffing levels to the Calvary Mater's emergency department. Introducing the changes will make the hospital the first affiliated health organisation to come under reforms already rolling out across 30 public hospital emergency departments, including the John Hunter. In May, the Newcastle Herald reported nurses were calling on the state government to expand the plan rather than make the Mater the exception among Hunter hospitals. Camilla Smith, the Mater branch secretary for the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association, said on Thursday the news was welcomed. She said there would "definitely be a bottle of champagne" to celebrate. "We're obviously all ecstatic and it couldn't come at a better time with just the surging and the flu and COVID intake and just generally people being sicker," she said. "We're finally getting acknowledged in staffing levels for the work that we do." "It's just been such a massive battle. When you're in the thick of it, you think it's not going to happen." Ms Smith said there remained issues, including "the highest number of code black incidents in the state", but expanding the reform to include the Mater would stop its resources falling behind. "People who work at the Calvary love it and they don't want to go, but when you're working under less staffing levels than every other hospital in your area, you've got to really love your job," she said. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the Safe Staffing Level reforms introduce minimum staffing levels, which the state government says will "result in more nurses employed in hospitals right across the state". "Importantly, this reform will deliver improved nursing numbers to provide care for patients while supporting our frontline healthcare staff," he said. In the public sector the rules dictate a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied emergency department resuscitation beds on all shifts, and one nurse per three generally occupied treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts. The Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce - incorporating local health districts, NSW Health and NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association representatives - is preparing to work out the full-time equivalent staffing required at the Calvary Mater, the state government said. Calvary Mater emergency department nurse unit manager Andrew Adams said extra staff would improve morale on the ground, as well as boosting safety and capacity for care. He said staff would likely feel safer with more colleagues due to the changes, having faced an increase in staff injuries and assaults. "We're one of the bigger EDs in the local health district, and we do see a lot of patients of high acuity," he said. "[With the extra staffing] our high-risk patients that we have in the department will be provided the safe nursing care that they actually deserve and we haven't been able to provide." Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said on Thursday it was "a big win" to have the Mater brought under the umbrella. "Calvary Mater Newcastle is not just a hospital," she said. "It's a vital part of the Hunter's health network and today's announcement means better care for every patient who walks through its doors. "The Hunter community has fought hard for a fairer health system, and this is the result of that advocacy. Real reform that strengthens patient care and supports our incredible nurses. "Safe Staffing Levels aren't just numbers on a roster, they're the difference between patients being seen sooner, being treated faster and having more time with the professionals who care for them." Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery said the fierce advocacy of front-line staff had paid off. "I want to thank the nurses of the Mater Hospital, in particular branch secretary Camilla Smith, for their patience and strong advocacy in seeing this Safe Staffing Level expansion," Ms Hornery said. "I also want to thank Minister Park for his commitment to expanding these reforms to all hospitals in the Wallsend electorate."
The Australian
18 hours ago
- The Australian
US axes mRNA vaccine contracts, casting safety doubts
President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday announced it would terminate 22 federal contracts for mRNA-based vaccines, questioning the safety of a technology credited with helping end the Covid pandemic and saving millions of lives. The announcement, made by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., marks his latest effort to weave vaccine skepticism into the core of US government policy. "We reviewed the science, listened to the experts, and acted," Kennedy said in a statement. The health department's Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is "terminating 22 mRNA vaccine development investments because the data show these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu," he added. "We're shifting that funding toward safer, broader vaccine platforms that remain effective even as viruses mutate." The changes affect Moderna's mRNA bird flu vaccine -- a move the company itself disclosed in May -- as well as numerous other programs, including "rejection or cancellation of multiple pre-award solicitations" from pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and Sanofi. In total, the affected projects are worth "nearly $500 million," the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said. Certain late-stage projects were excluded from the move "to preserve prior taxpayer investment." "Let me be absolutely clear: HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them," Secretary Kennedy said. "That's why we're moving beyond the limitations of mRNA and investing in better solutions." Since taking office, Kennedy, who spent two decades sowing misinformation around immunization, has overseen a major overhaul of US health policy -- firing, for example, a panel of vaccine experts that advise the government and replacing them with his own appointees. In its first meeting, the new panel promptly voted to ban a longstanding vaccine preservative targeted by the anti-vaccine movement, despite its strong safety record. He has also ordered a sweeping new study on the long-debunked link between vaccines and autism. Unlike traditional vaccines, which often use weakened or inactivated forms of the target virus or bacteria, mRNA shots deliver genetic instructions into the host's cells, prompting them to produce a harmless decoy of the pathogen and train the immune system to fight the real thing. Though in development for decades, mRNA vaccines were propelled from lab benches to widespread use through President Trump's Operation Warp Speed -- a public-private partnership led by BARDA that poured billions into companies to accelerate development. The technology's pioneers, Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman, were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their work contributing "to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times." ia/jgc
7NEWS
2 days ago
- 7NEWS
Chikungunya virus ripping through China prompts COVID-style quarantine response
A mosquito-borne virus spreading in parts of southeast China is triggering a COVID-style response there. Cases of the mosquito-borne virus chikungunya have spiked to more than 10,000 in the country, with more than 7000 of those reported in Foshun, in the southeast Guangdong Province. People who contract the virus in Foshun are being quarantined in hospital for a week, or until they test negative for chikungunya. Sanitation workers have also been seen spraying insecticide through outbreak areas and cleaning up green spaces in the Guangdong Province. 'If you have chikungunya, it is important to avoid mosquito bites while you have a fever ... because you could pass the infection on to the mosquito, which can then spread the virus to other people,' according to Health Direct. Chikungunya symptoms 'can be very similar to dengue fever' and the two viruses are also carried by the same type of mosquitoes, according to the NT Government. Fever, joint pain, nausea, fatigue and rashes are the most common symptoms of chikungunya virus — but, in rare cases, life-threatening complications of the brain and heart can develop. Most symptoms of the virus generally disappear within two weeks, however joint pain has reportedly persisted in some patients for years after they have contracted the virus. The virus is more serious for newborn babies, people older than 65, and people with a high blood pressure, diabetes, or heart conditions, according to Health Direct. The virus is not endemic in Australia but there is the potential for it to exist 'There have been no locally acquired cases, though mosquitoes capable of spreading the virus are present in some areas of Queensland,' according to the Australian Department of Health. 'Travellers can become infected with the chikungunya virus if travelling to a region of the world where chikungunya is found.' In the US, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention is advising travellers to wear long clothing and insect repellant, and to vaccinate against the virus if heading to outbreak areas. But there is no approved vaccine to prevent against chikungunya in Australia, according to Health Direct. Last year, there were 200 travel-related cases of chikungunya in the US. — With NBC
