Transcript
Please Note: This transcript is not edited and may contain errors.
00:00:00 Operator
Good afternoon and thank you for standing by for the duration of today's call. All listeners are in a listen-only mode until the question and answer session. At that time, credentialed members of the media press can press star one to ask a question or star 2 to withdraw questions. Today's call is being recorded; if you have objections, please disconnect at this time.
I would now like to introduce Mister Benjamin Haynes. Thank you, sit. You may begin.
00:00:26 Benjamin Haynes, CDC Moderator
Thank you, Amanda, and good afternoon, everybody; thank you for joining us today for CDC's hantavirus response update. Here to discuss the response is CDC 's hantavirus response lead, Dr. David Fitter. Dr. Fitter will provide brief opening remarks before taking your questions. I'd now like to turn it over to Dr. Fitter.
00:00:49 David Fitter, MD, Incident Manager for CDC's hantavirus response
Thanks Ben, and good afternoon everybody online. As I said yesterday the hantavirus is a known pathogen that we understand well.
While hantavirus has some distinct characteristics, including person to person transmission, we understand how to respond to it and remain vigilant.
I do want to repeat at this time the risk to the general public is low.
But as always, our top priority is the health and safety of both the passengers who were on the ship and American communities.
From the start, CDC has worked closely with state and local federal and international partners. We activated our emergency operations center, and we deployed staff to support the response overseas and here in the United States.
Our focus is on assessing each passenger's potential exposure and ensuring appropriate monitoring.
Testing is recommended only for those with symptoms, and decisions are guided by the best available evidence.
00:01:52
I want to walk through some specifics on the 42-day monitoring period.
There are currently 41 people across the U.S. that are under monitoring. They come from these three main groups: first, passengers who were recently repatriated and are now in Nebraska and Emory. Second, passengers who had already left the ship and had already returned home before the outbreak was identified. And third, people who have maybe been exposed during travel specifically on flights where a symptomatic case was present.
Some of these people are at home monitoring their health in close coordination with their state and local health departments, with CDC supporting those efforts.
If anyone develops symptoms, we've worked with their local health departments to ensure rapid access to testing and care.
00:02:46
This is a reminder most people under monitoring are considered high risk exposures, and CDC recommends everyone under monitoring stay at home and avoid being around people during their 42-day monitoring period.
We've emphasized not to travel. And across all these groups, our focus is ensuring appropriate health monitoring and quick access to care if needed.
00:03:12
You may ask why CDC is not using our federal quarantining authority on people.
Our approach is based on risk and evidence. We are working closely with passengers and public health partners to ensure monitoring and rapid access to care if symptoms develop.
Our goal is to work with them and alongside them, building plans based on their specific situations to protect the health and safety of passengers and American communities.
We understand that these passengers have already been through a difficult experience, and this coordinated approach reflects our respect for them as partners in keeping themselves and their communities safe.
00:03:53 Speaker 3
I want to close by reiterating that these people have already been through a tough time. We at CDC are deeply appreciative of their cooperation and coordination during this, and we remain committed to supporting them every step of the way.
We are also extraordinarily grateful for the coordination with state and local health authorities as well as our partners within the US government. Thank you.
00:04:26 Benjamin Haynes
Amanda, we're ready to open up for questions.
00:04:30 Operator
Thank you if you are a credentialed member of the media and you would like to ask a question during the call press star one on your touch tone phone press star 2 to withdraw your question you may ask one follow up question you make you up at any time we will go to our first question melody Schreiber with guardian us your line is open.
00:04:50 Melody Schreiber, The Guardian US
Thank you so much for doing this and for taking my question. I would love to walk through of what happens with the people who are monitoring at home for symptoms if they suspect that they are developing symptoms how do the testing happen right now especially given we don't have a clinical PCR test and how quickly our results being turned around.Thank you.
00:05:13 Dr. Fitter
So the first part is we are working closely with the passengers in the state and local health authorities to ensure that appropriate plan is in place based on our guidance.
I think I really want to ensure that they have their information in case something were to happen, and so they have the contact information of their health departments and also if there's anything else they need with regards to care where to go and how to go there.
We also coordinate how to get testing and get it to the CDC to ensure that testing happens rapidly we're able to do this in a 24 hour turnaround time.
00:05:50 Mr. Haynes
Next question please.
00:05:56 Operator
Thank you our next question comes from Apoorva Mandavilli with The New York Times. Your line is open.
00:06:03 Apoorva Mandavilli, The New York Times
Hi thank you for taking my question. I have a question about the 41 people that you mentioned who are under monitoring; it was the 18 people who came back the other day and the 7 who came back earlier we're talking about 16 or so people it sounds like who are others who might have been exposed during travel.
Dr. Bhattacharya said on interviews this weekend that the 7 people who came back before did not have symptoms has that information changed when you say these people were exposed during travel is that to those 7 Americans or are we talking about exposed at other times can you give us a little bit more information here.
00:06:42 Dr. Fitter
Certainly I think what I'm getting at is the 3rd sort of category of folks and these are people who may have been exposed to a case during travel so these are the known cases.
There was one that had traveled from off the ship had gotten off this ship earlier and taken a flight and so we want to ensure that we are being as prudent as possible for any possible contact.
00:07:10 Apoorva Mandavilli, The New York Times
Sorry that I understand what you said about them being exposed. I'm asking if they were exposed to directly on the ship when you say "during travel," or are you talking about exposed to a passenger from the ship? And in that case, are those the passengers who were infected, that these people were exposed to, are those the 7 came back before?
00:07:33 Dr. Fitter
No this is a person that was infected that was on the ship and had gotten on a plane and that's where we're monitoring people that were a contact of that person.
00:07:45 Mr. Haynes
Next.
00:07:46 Operator
Thank you our next question comes from Kristen Shamus with the Detroit Free Press; your line is open.
00:07:56 Kristen Shamus, Detroit Free Press
Thank you could you clarify for us how many people have been tested in the United states using our current testing capacity and whether any of the people who were considered symptomatic and/or you know inconclusively positive have since have been ruled out or ruled in for haunted virus infections?
00:08:24 Dr. Fitter
What I can say is that there are no cases in the United States currently but again with regards to testing we want to be very cautious about patient confidentiality in this space?
00:08:43 Mr. Haynes
Next question please Amanda.
00:08:46 Operator
Thank you; our next question comes from your Youri Benadjaoud with ABC News; your line is open.
00:08:53 Youri Benadjaoud, ABC News
Hi thanks for taking this call. Kansas health authorities put out a statement earlier that they had 3 people under monitoring that were currently at the hospitals. Do you guys have anything that you can add to that? Are these people currently showing symptoms? Is that something that you guys are tracking.
00:09:12 Dr. Fitter
Yeah we're working very closely with all the state and local health departments to monitor everybody all the contacts that are coming back again we would defer to the jurisdictions or the states about announcements that they would make about their residents but we are tracking everything very closely.
00:09:32 Youri Benadjaoud, ABC News
Is it part of your recommendations that people would be monitored in the clinical setting?
00:09:38 Dr. Fitter
We want to ensure that people are getting the appropriate care that they would need however if you look at our monitoring guidance that is coming out there is a appropriate monitoring that can happen in the home based setting but as we've discussed before.
But we encourage those that are in Nebraska to maintain to stay there, because they're receiving the monitoring that they need, and should anything arise from Nebraska is a fantastic place to be.
00:10:10 Mr. Haynes
Next question please thank you.
00:10:12 Operator
Thank you our next question comes from Leigh Ann Winick with CBS News; your line is open.
00:10:18 Leigh Ann Winick, CBS News
Thank you. To follow up on what Apoorva asked earlier, could you clarify are those extra by my count 16 people who are being monitored all connected to one travel on one plane. And also, do you have reports of people who are Americans who did not come directly home to the US after departing early before the outbreak was known, and might still be traveling or on their way back, or who might have exposed people in other countries potentially? Thank you.
00:10:54 Dr. Fitter
Yeah, to clarify, there was a known case that had gone ashore earlier than the Canary Islands that took a flight. Our job is to ensure that we are monitoring and in contact with anybody that might have been on the flights that this person had taken.
We're also monitoring all Americans that potentially would have been exposed whether in the US or abroad, and we have been in contact with them.
00:11:27 Leigh Ann Winick, CBS News
Could you clarify where that flight went so that the public would know if they need to be concerned that they might have been on the flight in the airport?
00:11:40 Dr. Fitter
WHO has reported that she went ashore in Saint Helena and took a flight to Johannesburg.
00:11:50 Mr. Haynes
Next question please.
00:11:53 Operator
Thank you. Our next question comes from Sophie Gardner with Politico; your line is open.
00:11:59 Sophie Gardner, Politico
Hi thanks for taking my question. I am wondering, CDC has said that the folks who are currently in Nebraska and Atlanta might have the option to go home soon and be monitored there. I'm wondering if the states where those individuals would be returning to have explicitly agreed to that.
00:12:22 Dr. Fitter
We're developing plans with the passengers and the jurisdiction, so all of the states are involved in any decision making as we continue to move forward. As I said earlier we want to ensure that a good plan is in place for the passengers and for the jurisdictions to ensure everyone remains safe and healthy and that all communities also remain safe and healthy.
00:12:46 Sophie Gardner, Politico
OK great, and one one quick follow-up: Has Doctor Fitter or any other, you know, career CDC subject matter experts on this briefed Secretary Kennedy on the outbreak?
00:12:59 Dr. Fitter
Secretary Kennedy is following the outbreak extraordinarily closely as well.
00:13:06 Mr. Haynes
Next question please.
00:13:09 Operator
Thank you; our next question comes from Michelle Marill with Atlanta Magazine; your line is open.
00:13:15 Michelle Marill, Atlanta Magazine
Thanks so much for taking my question. I had a question about the you mentioned that the 16 in Nebraska are being encouraged to stay in place because that's a quarantine facility designed for that. The 2 who are in Atlanta: Who I know there was a question about whether one of them had symptoms and apparently that was?
They tested negative and they don't have symptoms so they're in a facility that is meant for a very high level of medical care. I'm just wondering how that quarantine is working and whether or not those 2 people might be the first to be relocated. Or if they're even still there?
00:14:01 Dr. Fitter
We continue to work very closely with the passengers and also the jurisdiction so the state and local health departments to have a very strong plan in place with regards to any monitoring that would happen and that's what we will always continue to do.
00:14:22 Michelle Marill, Atlanta Magazine
OK so are they still there at the Emory facility?
00:14:31 Dr. Fitter
We would defer to jurisdictions to discuss any other further information.
00:14:38 Mr. Hayes
Amanda we have time for 2 more questions.
00:14:42 Operator
Thank you our next question comes from Charlotte Causit with AFP; your line is open.
00:14:50 Charlotte Causit, Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Hi thank you very much for taking my question. I wanted to go back to what you said yesterday about the passenger from the ship was tested before coming back to the US both negatively, and could you please tell us whether you got the results from the new test you did, or if you haven't, updated to provide us with it.
00:15:10 Mr. Haynes
I am so sorry we were having a hard time hearing your question there was some static on our end could you repeat it please and it won't count against your follow up either.
00:15:20 Charlotte Causit, Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Hi can I can you hear me OK right now?
00:15:24 Mr. Haynes
Yes this is better much better.
00:15:26 Charlotte Causit, Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Oh OK sorry sorry about this I wanted to go back on what you said yesterday about about the passenger of what tested positively and negatively before coming back to the US. You said you were awaiting the results from a new test. Could you, I mean, do you have any updates for us on this?
00:15:49 Dr. Fitter
Yes. The testing, it happened again, but again, we do not want to get ahead of the jurisdictions or the states before any announcements about test results or the person themselves.
00:16:06 Mr. Haynes
And our last question please.
00:16:10 Operator
Thank you our last question comes from Julie Anderson with Omaha World-Herald; your line is open.
00:16:17 Julie Anderson, Omaha World-Herald
Hello. What tests does CDC using, since I thought you only, are my understanding that you had a a research PCR test, but not the one that have been tested on humans or has it been tested on humans now?
00:16:33 Dr. Fitter
Yes, here CDC uses a CLIA approved serology test.
00:16:43 Julie Anderson, Omaha World-Herald
Thank you.
00:16:48 Mr. Haynes
Thank you Doctor Fitter, and thank you all for joining us today; this will conclude today's call.
00:16:54 Operator
Thank you. That concludes today's conference. Thank you for participating; you may now disconnect.