Hantavirus not a pandemic risk, but ‘Disease X’ could catch world unprepared

At a time when the hantavirus outbreak has sparked concern, experts warn that the world has failed to learn the right lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic. While hantavirus is not seen as having pandemic potential, experts caution more broadly that the extreme interconnectedness of today’s world means any new public health threat —from a novel virus or a drug-resistant bacterial infection— may not remain localised and could eventually become a global risk.