US Health officials have declared Chagas disease, a potentially deadly infection spread by the ‘kissing bugs’, an endemic. These bugs have been found in 32 states, and at least eight Americans have caught the disease from local transmission. This has led scientists to urge the CDC and the WHO to officially declare the illness as endemic in the U.S., which means it's a disease that is naturally present in the region. Experts believe that over 300,000 people in the U.S. may have Chagas disease, but very few of them know it.

What Is Chagas Disease?

According to UCLA Health, Chagas disease, a potentially life-threatening condition, is most commonly spread by the “kissing bug,” which gets its name because it tends to bite people on the face while they sleep. After biting, the bug defecates on the skin, leaving behind a parasite called T. cruzi. When the person scratches the itchy bite, they accidentally rub the parasite into the wound, and that's how it enters the bloodstream. Chagas disease can also be passed from a pregnant person to their baby, through organ transplants and blood transfusions, or by eating uncooked food that has been contaminated with the parasite.

Is Chagas Disease Contagious?

No, the Cleveland Clinic explains that this disease cannot spread from person to person. Many people with Chagas disease have no symptoms at all, which is why it's often called a "silent disease." In the early stage, which lasts about two months, some people might experience a swollen eyelid, fever, or body aches, but these symptoms are easily mistaken for other common illnesses.

Also Read: RFK Jr., at vaccine hearings, claims ‘We Were Lied To About Everything Around COVID.’

Over a person’s lifetime, about 20% of those infected will develop serious, long-term problems, most often affecting the heart. Chagas disease can slowly damage the heart, leading to an enlarged heart, heart failure, or even a heart attack. It can also cause digestive problems, like an enlarged colon.

How Big Are Kissing Bugs?

According to Texas A&M University, Kissing bugs are nocturnal insects that feed on blood. They are typically 1/2 to 1 inch long. Throughout their two-year lifespan, they bite people, dogs, and other animals multiple times to feed. Bites usually go unnoticed and do not attach like ticks.

What Are Signs And Symptoms of Chagas Disease?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Chagas disease happens in two main stages. For most people, the first stage goes unnoticed, but it can lead to very serious problems later on.

The First Stage

This early phase lasts for about two months after a person is infected. Most people have no symptoms at all, or they experience mild, general symptoms that could be caused by anything else, such as a fever, headache, muscle pain, or swelling. In rare cases, a person might see a specific sign, like a skin sore where they were bitten, or a purple swelling of one eyelid.

The Second Stage

The second stage of the disease can last for a person's entire life. During this time, the parasites hide mainly in the heart and muscles of the digestive system. About 10 to 30 years after being infected, up to a third of people will develop serious heart problems, and up to 1 in 10 will have digestive issues, such as an enlarged food pipe or colon. Over time, this can lead to an irregular heartbeat, slow heart failure, and in some cases, sudden death.

How To Treat Chagas Disease?

Anti-parasite medications are only effective at treating Chagas disease during its very early stage. Once the disease has been in the body for a while, there is no cure, though symptoms of heart failure can be managed with medication or even a heart transplant.

Doctors recommend that anyone who is from or has traveled to Latin America and begins to experience heart problems should be tested for Chagas disease. It's also worth noting that the U.S. blood supply has been tested for Chagas since 2007.

How Can We Prevent Chagas Disease?

WHO explains that because Chagas disease is carried by "kissing bugs" and is so widespread among wild animals throughout the Americas, it's not possible to completely wipe it out. Instead, public health efforts are focused on stopping the disease from spreading to humans, making sure infected people get diagnosed early, and providing them with lifelong medical care. To prevent the spread of Chagas disease, health organizations recommend a few key approaches:

Controlling the bugs

This is considered the most effective way to prevent the disease. It includes spraying homes and surrounding areas with bug-killing chemicals and making sure houses are built and kept clean to prevent the insects from living in cracks in the walls.

Personal protection

People can protect themselves with personal measures like using bed nets and practicing good hygiene when handling food.

Screening donors

Screening blood donors is necessary to prevent the disease from spreading through blood transfusions and organ transplants.

Checking newborns

It is also important to test newborns and other children of infected mothers, as the disease can be passed during pregnancy.

Sick days are again piling up with a respiratory disease, not COVID-19 or the flu. This disease is most likely the one Americans have not heard of. This is HMPV or human metapneumovirus. Doctors have asked people to stay vigilant as seasonal flu virus could lead to pneumonia and bronchitis, and it is spreading in California wastewater and around the country. However, as per public health officials, there is nothing to get worried at this point.

As per the public database WasterwaterScan Dashboard, high levels of HMPV were detected across Northern California cities. The highest levels were reported in Redwood City, whereas elevated levels were found in San Francisco Bay Area and Napa's Wine Country. What's more dangerous is that this virus is without a vaccine.

The good news is that in other parts of country HMPV remains lower. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that data from October 2025 shows the cases are trending up, especially during winter and spring.

Dr. Matthew Binnicker, director of the Clinical Virology Laboratory at Mayo Clinic, as reported by The Independent said, "In the late winter, early spring, it can account for five percent to 10 percent of all the respiratory infections that we diagnose in the United States. So it's definitely out there." Experts explain that other viruses like HMPV or influenza get a chance when COVID is quieter.

Read: HMPV Virus Cases Surging In California, New Jersey: Is It Dangerous?

Virus Without A Vaccine: What Is HMPV?

HMPV was first discovered in 2001 and is part of the Pneumoviridae family along with the Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

HMPV most likely spreads from an infected person to others through:

• the air by coughing and sneezing
• close personal contact, such as touching or shaking hands
• touching objects or surfaces that have the viruses on them, then touching the mouth, nose, or eyes

In the US, HMPV circulates in predictable patterns each year, typically beginning in winter and lasting through spring.

The usually self-limiting and mild symptoms typically last 4 to 5 days. These include:

• cough
• fever
• nasal congestion
• shortness of breath

People at risk include:

• elderly people
• children
• people with comorbidities

"The HMPV is not deadly, and there is no evidence of mortality or a severe transmission rate," former Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) scientist, Dr. Raman Gangakhedkar, told IANS, during the virus's outbreak in India in 2025.

“The virus may cause pneumonitis-like illness, but the mortality rates are almost unknown so far. HMPV has a global prevalence of about 4 per cent,” he added.

While no vaccine or treatment can prevent HMPV infection, to avoid the infection, individuals must:

Practice good hygiene and cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing, or use your elbow, not your hands, for it. And wash your hands properly, especially in healthcare settings.

Why Are People Hearing About The Virus Without Vaccine Now?

The reason people have not heard about it before is because its symptoms are nearly indistinguishable from other respiratory infections, so often it could go undiagnosed. Furthermore, earlier the COVID cases and influenza cases sparked up, which deviated the attention from HMPV. Now, with the season gone, and increased awareness around respiratory illnesses, greater attention to viruses like HMPV is also paid.

One in seven Indians, or over 14 percent of the population, suffers from some form of mental health disorder. Amid an increasing treatment gap -- up to 90 percent -- seen in several states, especially in North India, the government today reiterated the plan of launching a second National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in the northern states.

NIMHANS-2 was first announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the Union Budget 2026-27, to deliver specialized care for mental health and neurological disorders in north India.

Health experts and policymakers, as part of the government-led Post-Budget Webinar series, highlighted the growing burden of mental and neurological disorders in India and also stressed the urgent need to strengthen institutional capacity to meet emerging healthcare demands.

"One in seven Indians is affected by mental health disorders, while several states continue to face a treatment gap ranging from 70 to 90 percent," the experts said.

Noting that Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) account for over 60 percent of deaths in the country, they added that "neurological and mental health conditions are among the leading contributors to disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)," among the citizens.

Need For Tertiary Neuro-psychiatric Care

To address these, the experts called for ramping up tertiary mental health institutions and expanding specialized services.

The session, moderated by Vijay Nehra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, highlighted that North India currently lacks adequate tertiary neuro-psychiatric care facilities. These include areas such as:

• advanced neuroimaging,
• neurocritical care,
• specialized neurological services

Further, making a virtual address at the Post-Budget Webinar, Union Health Minister JP Nadda also highlighted the government’s focus on strengthening mental healthcare services in the country.

"NIMHANS-2 will be established in North India to expand advanced clinical care, training, and research," Nadda said.

"In addition, the Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi, and the Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health, Tezpur, will be upgraded as regional apex institutions to strengthen mental healthcare services in the eastern and north-eastern regions," he added.

Meanwhile, the experts also stressed the need to improve services in underserved and geographically remote regions, including the northeastern states, through better infrastructure, capacity building, and targeted deployment of trained mental health professionals.

They also discussed strategies for expanding advanced neuro-psychiatric care and reinforcing India’s overall mental healthcare ecosystem. They proposed:

• Adopting a hub-and-spoke model supported by digital health platforms

This would allow tertiary institutions and centers of excellence to provide technical guidance, specialist consultations, and clinical support to district hospitals and community-level health facilities.

"Such a model would strengthen referral pathways and ensure that specialized mental health services are accessible to people even in remote and rural areas," the experts said.

• Integrating services under Tele-MANAS

Both existing and upcoming campuses of NIMHANS must be integrated , as this will enable a robust nationwide tele-mental health network that ensures

• timely counselling,
• psychological support,
• specialist consultations

• Digital follow-up systems

The experts called for the seamless integration of healthcare facilities, aligned with the vision of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission and the ABHA ID ecosystem. This, they said, will

• enable continuity of care,
• Improve monitoring of patients,
• Lead to better clinical outcomes

• A national Brain-Mind Cloud Network

The Network proposed under the National Health Mission would connect premier institutions such as All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), state medical colleges, and primary healthcare centers through a digitally integrated platform.

It could also facilitate

• unified mental health records,
• AI-based screening tools,
• data-driven clinical decision support systems,
• tele-neuro-psychiatric hubs at regional centers.

California and New Jersey in the US are seeing an uptick in cases of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) -- a virus with no vaccine or treatment.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HMPV can cause upper and lower respiratory disease. There is currently no vaccine to prevent it, and no specific antiviral therapy to treat it.

"Most people will recover on their own," the agency noted, but advised people who get sick to drink plenty of liquids, stay home, and rest.

As per the CDC's respiratory dashboard, the cases of HMPV steadily ticked up since November 2025. It accounted for over 5 percent of positive tests the week of February 14 through February 21.

While HMPV is not a "new" virus, having first been discovered in 2001, cases haven't spiked to this level in the US since an outbreak in April 2025, USA Today reported.

The New Jersey Respiratory Surveillance Report cited that about 4 percent of residents in the state are testing positive for HMPV. The HMPV cases, accompanied by RSV, COVID, and flu cases, are surging, increasing the number of people seeking emergency medical care.

As per the public database, WastewaterScan Dashboard, HMPV is rampant in Northern California -- specifically San Francisco, Marin, Vallejo, Napa, Novato, Santa Rosa, Sacramento, and Davis, the Independent UK reported.

What Is HMPV? Is It Dangerous?

HMPV was first discovered in 2001 and is part of the Pneumoviridae family along with the Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

HMPV most likely spreads from an infected person to others through:

• the air by coughing and sneezing
• close personal contact, such as touching or shaking hands
• touching objects or surfaces that have the viruses on them, then touching the mouth, nose, or eyes

In the US, HMPV circulates in predictable patterns each year, typically beginning in winter and lasting through spring.

The usually self-limiting and mild symptoms typically last 4 to 5 days. These include:

• cough,
• fever,
• nasal congestion,
• shortness of breath

People at risk include:

• elderly people,
• children,
• people with comorbidities

"The HMPV is not deadly, and there is no evidence of mortality or a severe transmission rate," former Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) scientist, Dr. Raman Gangakhedkar, told IANS, during the virus's outbreak in India in 2025.

“The virus may cause pneumonitis-like illness, but the mortality rates are almost unknown so far. HMPV has a global prevalence of about 4 per cent,” he added.

While no vaccine or treatment can prevent HMPV infection, to avoid the infection, individuals must:

Practice good hygiene and cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing, or use your elbow, not your hands, for it. And wash your hands properly, especially in healthcare settings.