Hantavirus and COVID: How are they different?

(NewsNation) — A hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship has stoked fears of another pandemic, but there are significant differences between hantavirus and COVID-19. Public health experts say the risk to the public remains low, in part because of key differences between the two viruses. Here are some of the ways they differ: Incubation period The virus that causes COVID-19 has an incubation period of about two weeks. Hantavirus has a much longer incubation period, with the Andes strain having incubated as long as 42 days. That increases the amount of time people who may have been exposed to the virus need to monitor for symptoms. Disease transmission COVID-19 and the Andes hantavirus can both be transmitted from human to human. However, COVID-19 is significantly more contagious than hantavirus, which requires close contact between people. Asymptomatic spread One of the reasons COVID-19 is so contagious is that people spread the virus before they have symptoms and may have asymptomatic cases, in which they are continuing to spread the virus without realizing they are sick. Whether or not the Andes virus can be spread while someone is asymptomatic is currently unknown. Mortality rate The mortality rate for COVID-19 in the U. S. is about 1 percent. Andes hantavirus has a mortality rate of up to 39.8 percent. Age of virus COVID-19 was caused by a novel virus, meaning it was new and unknown. Scientists were learning about the virus and how it spread as the pandemic went on. Scientists have been aware of hantaviruses for decades, which means there is much more research they can draw on when it comes to treating patients and preventing infections from spreading. Tags CDC COVID-19 hantavirus WHO Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.