Coronavirus, mpox and rabies: A tale of three viruses
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 17 January 2024
⏱️ 28 minutes
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Summary
Today, we dissect three recent public health responses to learn about the world’s ability to prevent outbreaks – covid and beyond – in 2024.
Viruses are having a moment. Outbreaks around the world are on the rise, thanks to such factors as climate change, war and instability, and increased animal-to-human contact.
Covid-19 is still here. Even though fewer people are winding up in the hospital compared with last year, some health facilities are requiring masks again as a new variant appears better at infecting people, even those who are vaccinated. Meanwhile, across the globe, a deadlier strain of mpox is threatening the Democratic Republic of Congo, where lifesaving vaccines are difficult to obtain. In Nebraska, a kitten with rabies triggered an all-hands-on-deck public health response.
Post national health reporter Lena Sun has spent a lot of time trying to better understand pathogens and how they spread. She joins “Post Reports” to examine what lessons we have and haven’t learned from these three recent outbreaks, and what that means for preventing future ones.
Read more:
Another covid wave hits U.S. as JN.1 becomes dominant variant
Is this covid surge really the second largest?
Mpox surge in Congo raises concerns world will ignore warnings again
How one rabid kitten triggered intensive effort to contain deadly virus
Today’s show was produced by Elana Gordon and hosted by Elahe Izadi and guest host Arjun Singh. It was mixed by Sean Carter and edited by Lucy Perkins. Thanks to Tracy Jan and Fenit Nirappil.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If you've had COVID recently, you're not alone. We're in another wave and infections are up again. |
| 0:09.0 | But there are other viruses having a moment right now too. |
| 0:12.0 | I think we have to keep our eye on the ball because outbreaks are on the increase. |
| 0:17.0 | Lena Sun covers public health and infectious diseases for the post. |
| 0:24.0 | Part of it is more human and animal contact but part of it also is climate change. |
| 0:31.0 | Increased temperature, heat makes it easier for certain kinds of vector-born diseases, |
| 0:38.0 | i.e. ticks and mosquitoes to spread. |
| 0:42.0 | And there's also a war and instability that we are seeing so many |
| 0:45.9 | places around the world Israel Gaza in Ukraine and in many other parts of the world. |
| 0:54.0 | Lena has spent a lot of time looking at different viruses around the world |
| 0:58.0 | and why the response to outbreaks is so uneven. |
| 1:01.0 | And problem with public health is when it is working, it is so invisible. |
| 1:05.9 | That's the first thing that tends to get cut. |
| 1:08.0 | And so the hope is that people realize the importance of general surveillance and detection for all kinds of disease. |
| 1:15.0 | From the Newsroom of the Washington Post, this is Post Reports. |
| 1:23.4 | I'm your guest host Arjun Singh. |
| 1:25.9 | It's Wednesday, January 17th. |
| 1:29.2 | Today, an update on the latest COVID variant |
| 1:32.4 | and what the public health response to two other viruses |
| 1:35.5 | can tell us about the world's ability to respond to future outbreaks. |
| 1:39.2 | My colleague Alahayazati picks up the conversation with Lena from here. |
| 1:46.0 | Lena, it's nice to talk with you. |
... |
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