US President Donald Trump is hopeful that the deadly hantavirus outbreak is very much under control. However, questions are mounting as his administration cut funding to study the rat-borne virus last year.

According to the World Health Organization, eight people onboard the cruise ship MV Hondius have been infected with hantavirus. Of these, three have died, and five have been confirmed to have the virus. However, more people are likely to be infected, as the disease can take a long time to show symptoms.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Donald Trump sought to reassure Americans that the situation appeared contained.
"It's very much, we hope, under control," Trump said during an impromptu appearance near the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, DC. The President added that the administration planned to release "a full report" on the incident and said health officials were continuing to study the outbreak closely.

"We're doing the best we can," Trump told reporters when asked whether Americans should worry about the wider spread of the virus.
Notably, at least 23 passengers from the hantavirus-affected MV Hondius cruise ship returned home, including several to the United States - and one of them has already fallen ill.

Hantavirus Cases In The US?

Also read: Hantavirus Sparks Global Alert As Countries Race To Trace Contacts; WHO Says Risk Low

The travelers reportedly did not know they had been exposed to the deadly virus when they disembarked during the ship's stop at Saint Helena, a remote island in the South Atlantic, on April 23.

People in at least five US states - Georgia, Arizona, California, Texas, and Virginia - are reportedly being monitored for possible hantavirus exposure, though none have shown symptoms.

According to Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Director of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), "Hantavirus is not spread by people without symptoms, transmission requires close contact, and the risk to the American public is very low."