Dog-maintained rabies virus variant (DMRVV) was eliminated in the United States in 2007. During 2015–2019, three dogs with rabies were imported into the United States from Egypt, where DMRVV is endemic. CDC developed a risk mitigation strategy, in consultation with a diverse group of subject matter experts, that permitted 296 dogs to be imported from Egypt during May 10, 2019–December 31, 2020, minimizing the risk for future rabid dog importations. The broadly vetted risk mitigation strategy, which included serologic testing for rabies antibody titer, improved CDC’s ability to ensure that imported dogs from Egypt posed no public health risk in the United States. This strategy could be used to guide future policy decisions regarding dog importations.

In 2007, the United States successfully eliminated canine rabies virus variant. Globally, however, dogs remain the principal source of human rabies infections. Since 2007, three cases of canine rabies virus variant were reported in dogs imported into the United States, one each from India (2007), Iraq (2008), and Egypt (2015) (1-3). On December 20, 2017, a dog imported into the United States from Egypt was identified with rabies, representing the second case from Egypt in 3 years. An Egyptian-based animal rescue organization delivered four dogs from Cairo, Egypt, to a flight parent (a person solicited through social media, often not affiliated with the rescue organization, and usually compensated with an airline ticket), who transported the dogs to the United States. The flight parent arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York City and, via transporters (persons who shuttle dogs from one state to another), transferred the dogs to foster families; the dogs ultimately were adopted in three states. The Connecticut Department of Public Health Laboratory (CDPHL) confirmed the presence of a canine rabies virus variant in one of the dogs, a male aged 6 months that was adopted by a Connecticut family. An investigation revealed the possibility of falsified rabies vaccination documentation presented on entry at JFK, allowing the unvaccinated dog entry to the United States. This report highlights the continuing risk posed by the importation of dogs inadequately vaccinated against rabies from high-risk countries and the difficulties in verifying any imported dog's health status and rabies vaccination history.

On January 16, 2018, CDC was notified by the Florida Department of Health of potential rabies virus exposure in two persons believed to be residents of Switzerland. Rabies virus infections cause a fatal encephalitis, and persons exposed to the virus are advised to receive postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) as soon as possible (1). On January 10, 2018, a married couple found a bat in a Naples, Florida, shopping mall parking lot and took it to a local veterinary clinic. The woman, estimated to be aged 50–60 years, stated that they were Swiss tourists. No other identifying information was obtained. On January 15, 2018, the bat tested positive for rabies by the direct fluorescent antibody test at the Florida Department of Health public health laboratory. After repeated efforts to identify the couple were unsuccessful, CDC was able to locate the couple by using the national focal point network maintained by World Health Organization (WHO) International Health Regulations (IHR) (2); the two were promptly administered PEP.

In estimates of illness severity from the spring wave of the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic, reported case fatality proportions were less than 0.05%. In prior pandemics, subsequent waves of illness were associated with higher mortality. The authors evaluated the burden of the pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) outbreak in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, in the fall of 2009, when increased influenza activity heralded the second wave of the pandemic in the United States. Using data from a community survey, existing surveillance systems, public health laboratories, and local hospitals, they estimated numbers of pH1N1-associated illnesses, emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalizations, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and deaths occurring in metropolitan Atlanta during the period August 16, 2009-September 26, 2009. The authors estimated 132,140 pediatric and 132,110 adult symptomatic cases of pH1N1 in metropolitan Atlanta during the investigation time frame. Among children, these cases were associated with 4,560 ED visits, 190 hospitalizations, 51 ICU admissions, and 4 deaths. Among adults, they were associated with 1,130 ED visits, 590 hospitalizations, 140 ICU admissions, and 63 deaths. The combined symptomatic case hospitalization proportion, case ICU admission proportion, and case fatality proportion were 0.281%, 0.069%, and 0.024%, respectively. Influenza burden can be estimated using existing data and local surveys. The increased severity reported for subsequent waves in past pandemics was not evident in this investigation. Nevertheless, the second pH1N1 pandemic wave led to substantial numbers of ED visits, hospitalizations, and deaths in metropolitan Atlanta.