In early May, a cruise ship sailing the Atlantic Ocean experienced an outbreak of hantavirus, a typically rodent-borne virus, causing at least three deaths and at least eight others to become ill or test positive for the virus. In response, passengers from more than 20 countries were flown home and quarantined, including an American who “was suspected of infection after initial testing.”

Nevertheless, the World Health Organization has said that “the risk of hantavirus spreading to the general population is ‘absolutely low,’” with the organization’s head of epidemic and pandemic preparedness saying, “This is not the start of an epidemic, this is not the start of a pandemic.”

A hantavirus vaccine is currently in development, though it could be years before it is released.

Some right-wing and far-right figures on podcasts and social media have been baselessly claiming that hantavirus is the beginning of a planned outbreak.

For instance, David Niño Rodriguez, a podcaster whom The Daily Beast described as “a vocal QAnon supporter,” posted on Truth Social about hantavirus, claiming that “they’re moving into desperate territory” and that the death of late actor Gene Hackman’s wife from the virus “was just the beginning. … Here we go again.”

Some were more specific about who they thought was responsible for the spread of the virus — like the World Health Organization — and their alleged nefarious reasons, which include forcing vaccines on people and “rig[ging] elections.”

Sherri Tenpenny, a podcaster with a history of spreading vaccine misinformation, suggested that the WHO may have had a role in the outbreak to help secure a treaty, claiming that “they can’t agree” on “how countries … ensure equitable access to vaccines and treatments,” and questioning if the ship outbreak was a “coincidence.”

On conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ network, host Harrison Smith said, “If I was the bad guy, you know what I would do? I’d really release the hantavirus. I would really have an actually super deadly virus spreading from person to person, and then I would release a real vaccine.”

An account for the far-right podcast X22 Report suggested in a social media post that this could be “another manufactured event to push vaccines.”

“Pepe Deluxe,” whom Vice described as an “influential QAnon promoter,” shared a social media post — which said “LMAO - incoming plandemic” in response to news of WHO’s media briefing on hantavirus — with Pepe Deluxe also writing, “I’m sure they already have a vaccine ready 🙄.”

On another podcast, The Shannon Joy Show, gynecologist James Thorp, who has spread vaccine misinformation, claimed that “this hantavirus event and future events will be used to scare the population into taking the vaccines,” and told viewers, “Don’t ever take a vaccine for the hantavirus.”

Mikki Willis, the filmmaker behind the viral Plandemic film that helped popularize the conspiracy theory that the COVID pandemic was planned, suggested that “they are … gonna try this again” with hantavirus, falsely adding that “Pfizer already has a vaccine ready.”

Meanwhile, Judy Mikovits, who was featured in Plandemic, spoke with Rodriguez about hantavirus, somehow bringing vaccine boosters into it.

Several figures suggested that the virus was released to disrupt the 2026 elections. Podcast host Tim Pool said that the “hantavirus pandemic panic” was “just in time for a midterm election” (though he also said the virus was “no big story”). And a fellow podcaster, Benny Johnson, called the virus “an op to rig elections." A Newsmax host later similarly said, “They are doing it all over again on purpose. COVID started in March 2020, impacted the November elections. Hantavirus started in May of 2026.”

A user on the far-right forum previously known as TheDonald wrote that “the best condition for a virus to spread, is an election year.”

And an article on the The Gateway Pundit for a “Contagion Emergency Kit” mused about whether hantavirus was “another plandemic” and a “transparent effort to terrorize Americans and swing the mid-terms against President Trump.”

Some social media users also pointed to a 2022 post with the text “2023: Corona ended 2026: Hantavirus” and claimed the post was proof of a “White Hat exposure operation.” A user on the conspiracy subreddit called the post “predictive programming” and said it “feels like yet another planned out, manufactured ritual.” (Pool mentioned it on his podcast as well.)

Some figures also suggested the hantavirus outbreak was caused by a lab leak in Australia. Podcaster Seth Holehouse said, “Three hundred and twenty-three vials containing deadly viruses go missing from a lab in Australia. … Two vials contain the hantavirus. Imagine that. … So, is this kind of like the precursor? Is this like the Wuhan lab leak?”

These claims about hantavirus are essentially recycled versions of what the right and far right pushed during the coronavirus pandemic: that the pandemic was planned, that it was a ploy to overthrow Trump or help Democrats win the 2020 election, and that “the vaccine was invented before the COVID-19 pandemic to advance vaccine sales.”

Conspiracy theories and misinformation about COVID-19 helped drive down COVID vaccination rates and primed people to reject other vaccines as well. This has had other long-term consequences, possibly contributing to declining vaccine rates and outbreaks of measles, which may lead to the U.S. losing its measles elimination status. Recycling the same claims could help further entrench that vaccine hesitancy and erode public trust in health institutions at a time when the Trump administration has already been cutting federal resources for pandemic preparedness.