The Economist.
Two viruses have been in the news this week.
The long journey for the cruise ship at the heart of the hantavirus outbreak
has finally reached its final port, the MV Hondius has docked...
The World Health Organisation says that the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa
is spreading faster and more widely than previously thought.
This situation is a public health emergency of international concern.
Stories like these can trigger some traumatic memories.
Remember that unknown virus spreading through China and before long, ending up in every inhabited territory on Earth?
COVID-10 laid bare all sorts of problems in the way the world responds to pandemics.
Its aftermath presented a big opportunity for the world to come together
and learn some lessons for future diseases.
But this month's outbreaks have come in the wake of some worrying developments on that front.
America has left the World Health Organisation, the country used to be the organisation's biggest source of funds.
And of course, the American and many other Western governments
have also gutted their spending on international aid,
which would previously have been used to help manage dangerous viruses around the world.
So with worries about hantavirus cases being imported across borders
and a growing Ebola outbreak in Central Africa,
how can these disease outbreaks be handled in this new, poorer time for global public health?