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WHO seeks more details from Russia about reasons for plague institute worker's death

The WHO has asked Russia for more details about the death of a plague institute worker in Siberia, saying transparent information sharing is essential.

The World Health Organization said on Wednesday it had requested more information from Russia about what killed a plague institute ​worker in Siberia, saying transparency was vital to get a clear picture ‌of potential health risks.

The Long Sip
What happened

The WHO formally requested more information from Russia about the death of a 28-year-old plague institute worker in Siberia from unexplained pneumonia.

The detail

Around 200 people were initially placed in quarantine, though Russia's health watchdog said no plague cases were detected among contacts of the deceased.

What it means

The WHO said timely and transparent reporting under international health rules is essential to assess any public health risk from the incident.

Full story at Reuters

What readers are saying

Shirl
The WHO statement specifically mentions media reports of a second employee with pneumonia of undetermined cause. Without clarification those conflicting accounts will keep fuelling suspicion even after most of the quarantined group has been released.
BigSue
Transparency from Russia would stop all the second death rumours.
tomt
Marco Rubio and the WHO are both pushing for answers from Moscow because nobody outside of Russia can verify what the actual pathogen was. When the health watchdog admits sixty percent of contacts were already released without publicly explaining how the worker fell ill, international pressure is entirely predictable.
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