Overview

• Rodrigo Becerra, a 26-year-old hotel employee in Mammoth Lakes, California, died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome on March 6 after being misdiagnosed and discharged from the hospital.
• Betsy Arakawa, the wife of actor Gene Hackman, was confirmed to have died of hantavirus in February at their New Mexico home, according to the state’s Chief Medical Examiner.
• Health officials have confirmed three hantavirus-related deaths this season, with traces of rodent droppings found in workplaces, including the Mammoth Mountain Inn where Becerra worked.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that hantavirus, a rare but often fatal rodent-borne disease, has a 38–50% mortality rate and infects 20–50 people annually in the U.S.
• Public health agencies are urging stricter preventive measures and increased clinical awareness to address diagnostic delays and reduce further infections.