Neil Vora, MD

More than six years after a novel coronavirus spread to the United States, American leaders are still locked in a partisan cage-match over the origin of the pathogen.

Because whatever the precise cause of the last pandemic, this much is true: Humanity enabled it.

latimes.comContributor: Forget about COVID-19's origins. Focus on preventing the next pandemicThe cycle of recriminations and scapegoating undermines everyone’s common goal of preventing future waves of mass death, lockdowns and school closures.

Read more in my latest OpEd for the @latimes.com www.latimes.com/opinion/stor...

More than six years after a novel coronavirus spread to the United States, American leaders are still locked in a partisan cage-match over the origin of the pathogen.

Both explanations highlight growing global biosecurity issues. Elected officials in the US need to stop the bickering, and start walking and chewing gum at the same time.

That is, they need to address rampant commercial wildlife trade (particularly in the US, which is one of the world's largest importers of wildlife), and also strengthen safety standards for critical research into dangerous pathogens.

More than six years after a novel coronavirus spread to the United States, American leaders are still locked in a partisan cage-match over the origin of the pathogen.

While I’d love to know the “true” answer about how it emerged (based on peer-reviewed evidence, I favor a "wet market" origin over a "lab leak", but can't rule out the latter), it doesn’t change how we ought to move forward.

thinkglobalhealth.orgNew World Screwworm: A Call to End the Open-Border Policy for U.S. Wildlife Trade | Think Global HealthThe U.S. government should use its existing authority to address zoonotic spillover risks from the wildlife trade

The US has closed its borders to certain classes of people--including Americans responding to Ebola--and livestock, yet has an open border policy when it comes to wildlife trade.

Think Global Health@thinkglobalhealth.org

New World screwworm has reemerged in the United States. @conservationdoc.bsky.social explains how this outbreak is a wake-up call for policymakers to prevent and prepare for major disease events involving animals and humans.

This constant flow of animals is a dangerous game of pandemic roulette played with American lives, and simply must stop. It's a dangerous gain-of-function experiment that is allowed to take place, with no oversight, in living rooms and businesses across the country.

Meanwhile, this industry largely exists to supply exotic pets, not essential needs. The good news is that the US government could implement solutions now, without relying on Congress. For more, check out my latest piece in @thinkglobalhealth.org. Huge thanks to @akrugman.bsky.social for editing!

The US has closed its borders to certain classes of people--including Americans responding to Ebola--and livestock, yet has an open border policy when it comes to wildlife trade.

Think Global Health@thinkglobalhealth.org

thelancet.comInternational response to hantavirus outbreakThe Andes hantavirus outbreak linked to expedition cruise ship m/v Hondius has prompted an international public health response, with authorities monitoring passengers and crew across multiple countri...

It is one of the world's largest purchasers of wildlife, each year importing tens of millions of live animals straight from the wild, creating the exact conditions needed for pathogens to spill over.

Neil Vora, MD reposted

Paul Adepoju, PhD

@pauladepoju.bsky.social

14 June

New in @lancetmicrobe.bsky.social: I wrote about the Andes hantavirus outbreak linked to the m/v Hondius — and what @conservationdoc.bsky.social says it reveals about spillover prevention, surveillance and outbreak response. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

A huge honor to have contributed to today's United Nations stakeholders meeting, helping inform Member States as they draft the Declaration for the upcoming UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response.

The science is clear. The stakes could not be higher. We now have a rare policy opportunity. The actions policymakers take in the next few months could change history.

(Also pictured: a painting of my childhood hero, spotted in the lobby; not pictured: the amazing people who attended the meeting with me and who work every day to create a better world)

The upcoming High-Level Meeting and the Declaration is an opportunity to change course. Operationalizing a true One Health approach will require the Declaration to:

1. Distinguish between primary and secondary prevention 2. Articulate commitments to address the drivers of spillovers 3. Urge Member States to develop national One Health action plans 4. Establish concrete financing commitments for primary prevention

My remarks were shaped by nearly a decade as a CDC epidemiologist and, of course, the recent Hantavirus outbreak and ongoing Ebola epidemic.

I emphasized that the standard public health approach to zoonotic viruses is to wait for them to spill over and then scramble to respond. Such "watchful waiting", however, is inequitable. The communities that suffer spillovers are the first to be harmed, as we are seeing play out in DRC right now.

8 June

Wildlife trade is like a ticking time bomb in the hearts of the world's largest population centers. The world needs a robust legal framework to address the public health risks of wildlife trade (both legal and illegal). Until then, we're playing a dangerous game of pandemic roulette.

insideclimatenews.orgMass Sloth Deaths in Florida Show Why the Wildlife Trade Is a Pandemic Risk - Inside Climate NewsNecropsy reports from sloths imported by a planned Orlando tourist attraction document stressed animals riddled with bacteria, parasites and viruses. Scientists say the situation is a warning about th...

8 June

Grateful to @katiesurma.bsky.social and @kileyprice.bsky.social e.bsky.social for covering the pandemic risks of wildlife trade for @insideclimatenews.org climatenews.org, and for including my perspective. insideclimatenews.org/news/0706202...

I responded to the two largest Ebola outbreaks in history (in Liberia in 2014 and DRC in 2019).

This cruel and short-sighted policy will encourage secrecy while deterring Americans from volunteering for a critical mission. As this outbreak grows — already the third largest in history — the absence of the US only increases the probability of cases reaching the United States.

latimes.comContributor: U.S. should help contain Ebola outbreak, not aggravate the crisisClosing the U.S. border to anyone potentially exposed to the virus, including American aid workers, is likely to undermine containment efforts.

Read more in my @latimes.com OpEd: www.latimes.com/opinion/stor...

I responded to the two largest Ebola outbreaks in history (in Liberia in 2014 and DRC in 2019).

Rather than being treated at top facilities here in the US, they'll be quarantined at a hastily assembled facility in Kenya (which, also shockingly, will not serve Kenyans).

Members of the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (of which I used to be a part of) will staff the facility, with no guarantee of evacuation if they themselves are exposed.

I responded to the two largest Ebola outbreaks in history (in Liberia in 2014 and DRC in 2019).

In 2015, I led the largest Ebola active monitoring program in the United States, which allowed the US to keep its borders open to travelers from affected countries while managing risk effectively. This policy worked. The Trump administration's new policy, however, will not.

The US is now barring entry to non-citizens who were recently in Ebola-affected countries and — shockingly — to Americans who have been exposed, including those who went overseas precisely to save lives and protect everyone back home.

The Ebola outbreak unfolding right now is a tragedy that is going to get much worse.

But prevention is a bargain. Protecting tropical forests doesn't only reduce pandemic risk — it fights climate change and biodiversity loss at the same time. Every dollar spent on spillover prevention goes a long way.

time.comThe Ebola and Hantavirus Outbreaks Offer an Ominous Warning“Ebola and hantavirus are different viruses spreading under different circumstances, but both come from animals,” writes Neil Vora.

It's time to get our act together: invest in true prevention alongside stronger public health response. I wrote about all of this in TIME today. time.com/article/2026...

The Ebola outbreak unfolding right now is a tragedy that is going to get much worse.

And in both cases we're seeing the limits of the public health establishment's reactive approach: wait for the outbreak, then respond. The people who suffer most from this reactive posture are usually those who are already marginalized.

This is why prevention matters so much. We pour resources into fighting outbreaks after they erupt, while almost entirely neglecting the work of stopping spillovers before they happen.

The Ebola outbreak unfolding right now is a tragedy that is going to get much worse.

What's even more heartbreaking is knowing that outbreaks like this will only grow more frequent because of what we humans continue to do to animals and the natural world. In other words, we are doing this to ourselves.

This Ebola outbreak is occurring at the same time as an outbreak of hantavirus, another high-consequence pathogen. Different viruses, different circumstances — but both originate in animals.

The Ebola outbreak unfolding right now is a tragedy that is going to get much worse.

I spent nearly a decade at the CDC fighting epidemics, including on the ground in the two largest Ebola outbreaks in history. I've seen how bad these get.

19 May

I joined @mikedigirolamo.bsky.social of @mongabay.com to discuss the awful hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks unfolding right now. Tragically, we keep re-learning the same lesson: our actions drive the increasing frequency of spillovers of viruses from animals to humans.

19 May

Mike and I also took a deep dive into fur farming. While not responsible for either of these outbreaks, fur farming is a disaster in plain sight and banning it is a commonsense action that will leave humanity better off (not to mention the massive animal welfare implications).

news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026...

19 May

news.mongabay.comMeasures must be taken now to prevent pandemics at the source, says epidemiologist“[The]cruel irony here [is] that the world cannot get its act together to address these threats … people are dying, animals are suffering, we’re losing rainforest … these are all interconnected threat...

Fur farming is pandemic roulette played for the sake of luxury coats.

Eighteen EU member states already restrict fur farming but the European Commission is currently waffling on a bloc-wide ban. In the US, the Mink VIRUS Act would phase out mink farming within a year.

theguardian.comBan fur farming or risk a new pandemic | Neil VoraBanning an industry that is brutal to animals could be one of the most consequential public-health measures in decades

More in my latest OpEd for The Guardian. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Fur farming is pandemic roulette played for the sake of luxury coats.

Then there's the cruelty. Every US state treats killing a dog or cat as a felony, yet we tolerate the industrial-scale gassing and electrocution of millions of foxes, mink, and chinchillas each year.

We need to ban fur farming NOW. The industry is dying, and putting an end to this horrendous practice is within reach.

Fur farming is pandemic roulette played for the sake of luxury coats.

In 2020, Denmark slaughtered 17 million captive mink after a mutant SARS-CoV-2 strain jumped from mink on fur farms to humans. But this wasn't a freak event.