White House tracking reports of plague in Russia, weighing response
The Trump administration is monitoring reports of a suspected plague outbreak in Russia's Irkutsk region and considering its options. Several local hospitals have imposed a three-week quarantine.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is tracking reports of a suspected plague case in Russia's Irkutsk region, a White House official told Axios. According to the official, the administration is watching the situation closely and weighing possible courses of action.
The reports emerged after an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute died at a hospital in the town of Shelekhov, within the Irkutsk region. Unconfirmed reports indicate she had contracted pneumonic plague, a severe form of the disease. Russia's consumer protection and public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, has not confirmed this, describing her condition instead as "pneumonia of unknown origin."
In response, several hospitals in the Irkutsk region have introduced a three-week quarantine. A healthcare source who spoke to the outlet People of Baikal said physicians in Irkutsk are already discussing plague openly among themselves, even though the diagnosis has not appeared in any official records.
It remains unclear what specific steps, if any, the U.S. administration might take in response to the situation. Russian authorities have not officially confirmed a plague case.
