Dr. Anne Rimoin

I am so honored to be named the Gordon–Levin Endowed Chair in Infectious Diseases and Public Health at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health @UCLAFSPH . Thank you Tom Gordon for your support and recognition of the importance of public health research.

Prelim positive case in West Equatoria, South Sudan. "20 May 2026, Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak, DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan: Nearly 600 suspected cases reported" beaconbio.org/en/report/?rep…

Helen is right. These numbers are staggering, and they are likely to rise quickly given the lag in detecting transmission early in the outbreak. We are chasing far behind this #Ebola outbreak now. Bringing it under control will require major resources, coordination, and sustained effort.

Very important points on the importance of local health care workers and community trust in controlling this rapidly expanding #Ebola outbreak below. 👇

NEW: Americans may have been exposed in Congo Ebola outbreak. USG is weighing plans to medically evacuate one symptomatic person. My latest. @washingtonpost.com washingtonpost.com/health/2026/05…

Very important point 👇

#WHO said today the suspected #Ebola #Bundibugyo case in Kinshasa tested negative on confirmatory testing. A tiny bit of good news in a very bad news situation. statnews.com/2026/05/17/who…

@HelenBranswell @lenalanadie That’s very good news.

@lenalanadie @arimoin The suspected case in Kinshasa turned out to be negative on confirmatory testing.

@HelenBranswell is right to call this out. A confirmed #Ebola case in Kinshasa potentially changes the risk picture because it suggests the virus may have moved from a remote outbreak zone into one of the largest, most connected cities in Africa. Two reportedly unlinked confirmed cases in Kampala are also very concerning. The critical question now is whether these are isolated imported cases or evidence of local transmission in major urban centers. Those are very different scenarios. This does not mean containment has failed. But the window for getting ahead of this gets much narrower if there is any unrecognized urban transmission. Speed, diagnostics, contact tracing, and coordination matter even more now.

Very glad to see @DrTedros act swiftly to declare the #Ebola outbreak in #DRC and #Uganda a #PHEIC. This makes good sense given what we know so far. Large numbers of suspected cases before confirmation, cross-border spread, delayed recognition due in part to diagnostic limitations, a highly mobile population, conflict in the region, and the need for intensive international coordination all fit the criteria for a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. This is a big step in mobilizing resources and facilitating coordination that is critical to getting this outbreak under control.

People who were at LAX at the same time may have been exposed to the measles virus. Read more: ktla.com/news/local-new…

Public Health is investigating a confirmed case of measles in a resident who recently traveled internationally. Swipe for flight details and exposure location. For more information on measles visit: ph.lacounty.gov/measles (link in bio) 1/2

Ebola is no stranger in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has seen more than a dozen outbreaks since the virus was first identified there 50 years ago. But a new outbreak announced by the Ministry of Health has raised more red flags than usual. The ministry says there are already 246 suspected cases, including 80 deaths, in the remote province of Ituri, suggesting the virus spread widely before it was identified. The virus is a rare species called Ebola Bundibugyo, which standard field tests often miss, and for which no vaccines and therapeutics exist. scim.ag/42A38se

HHS reports one American PCR positive for Andes virus with no symptoms mentioned, apparently asymptomatic. Before drawing conclusions, we need to ask: Is this pre-symptomatic infection with active viral shedding? A true asymptomatic case? Or could this be a false positive? The 'mildly positive' language raises questions. All three are scientifically plausible. All three have different implications for how we understand #AndesVirus transmission. #Hantavirus

To the people of Tenerife, My name is Tedros, and I serve as the Director-General of the @WHO, the @UN agency responsible for global public health. It is not common for me to write directly to the people of a single community, but today I feel it is not only appropriate, it is necessary. I want to speak to you directly, not through press releases or technical briefings, but as one human being to another, because you deserve that. I know you are worried. I know that when you hear the word “outbreak” and watch a ship sail toward your shores, memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest. The pain of 2020 is still real, and I do not dismiss it for a single moment. But I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID-19. the current public health risk from #hantavirus remains low. My colleagues and I have said this unequivocally, and I will say it again to you now. The virus aboard the MV Hondius is the Andes strain of hantavirus. It is serious. Three people have lost their lives, and our hearts go out to their families. The risk to you, living your daily life in Tenerife, is low. This is the WHO’s assessment, and we do not make it lightly. Right now, there are no symptomatic passengers on board. A WHO expert is on that ship. Medical supplies are in place. Spain’s authorities have prepared a careful, step-by-step plan: passengers will be ferried ashore at the industrial port of Granadilla, far from residential areas, in sealed, guarded vehicles, through a completely cordoned-off corridor, and repatriated directly to their home countries. You will not encounter them. Your families will not encounter them. I also want to say something else, something that goes beyond the science. I personally thanked Prime Minister @sanchezcastejon for #Spain’s decision to receive this ship. I called it an act of solidarity and moral duty. Because that is what it is. I want you to know that the WHO’s request to Spain was not made arbitrarily. It was made in full accordance with the International Health Regulations, the legally binding framework that defines the rights and obligations of countries and the WHO when responding to public health events of international concern. Under those rules, the nearest port with sufficient medical capacity must be identified to ensure the safety and dignity of those on board. Tenerife met that standard. Spain honoured it. Nearly 150 people from 23 countries have been at sea for weeks, some of them grieving, all of them frightened, all of them longing for home. Tenerife has been chosen because it has the medical capacity, the infrastructure, and the humanity to help them reach safety. And because I believe that so deeply, I will be there myself. I intend to travel to Tenerife to observe this operation firsthand, to stand alongside the health workers, port staff, and officials who are making it happen, and to personally pay my respects to an island that has responded to a difficult situation with grace, solidarity, and compassion. Your humanity deserves to be witnessed, not just acknowledged from a distance. As I have said many times: viruses do not care about politics, and they do not respect borders. The best immunity any of us has is solidarity. Tenerife is demonstrating that solidarity today. The ship’s captain, Jan Dobrogowski, crew and the company operating the vessel have shown exemplary collaboration at this challenging time. On behalf of the World Health Organization, and on behalf of those passengers and their families around the world, I thank the people of Tenerife and everyone else involved. Please take care of yourselves and of each other. Trust in the preparations that have been made. And know that the WHO stands with you, and with every person on that ship, every step of the way. With respect, care, and gratitude, Tedros

Great to see rapid release of #hantavirus sequencing data from the cruise ship outbreak. Early analysis is reassuring: the virus appears similar to known #Andes virus strains already circulating in S. America. Combined w/epidemiologic investigation it will help put together key pieces of this puzzle.

Don’t forget, on the Diamond Princess Cruise early in the COVID pandemic the Ro reproductive number for the original lineage went from around 2 to 14.8, cruise ships can be a crucible for respiratory viruses academic.oup.com/jtm/article/27…

A suspected #Hantavirus event involving a cruise ship is unusual. Key questions now: Which hantavirus is involved? Where did exposure occur? Shared environmental source? Any evidence of another transmission pathway? Sequencing and careful epidemiology will be critical.

Great to host my extraordinary colleague/friend Prof Anne Rimoin @arimoin @UCLAFSPH UCLA Fielding School of Public Health here at @TXMedCenter @BCM_TropMed @TexasChildrens discussing her important work tomorrow on epidemiological approaches to pandemic threats and public health

Same! 👇🤣🇧🇪🇨🇩✈️🤣