White House monitors suspected plague case in Russia

The White House is monitoring reports of a suspected plague case and related quarantine measures in Russia, according to Axios, citing a Trump administration official. Russian health authorities took precautionary measures after the death of a woman who worked at a plague research center, but have not confirmed she contracted the disease. Nearly 200 contacts are under medical observation, with all tests negative so far. The woman, Darya Shipilova, 28, reportedly broke a test tube containing pneumonic plague on September 25 and died on October 2. Russian officials called her illness "pneumonia of unknown etiology" and said the epidemiological situation remains stable.