Public Health and Infectious Disease

A Fox News report citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more than 10,600 tuberculosis (TB) cases were confirmed in the U.S. in 2024, about three per 100,000 people, marking the third straight annual increase and the highest count since 2013. Infectious‑disease physician Renuga Vivekanandan attributes the rise largely to a post‑COVID 'rebound effect,' as latent TB infections that went undetected or untreated when surveillance and treatment programs were disrupted are now progressing to active disease. She also points to resumed international travel and increased migration from higher‑TB‑burden countries, combined with local and state TB programs that remain understaffed, as contributing factors. The piece explains that while U.S. incidence is still far below the global average of roughly 131 cases per 100,000, TB remains a potentially deadly airborne infection that mostly attacks the lungs and can spread when people with active pulmonary disease cough, speak or sneeze. Public‑health experts warn the trend underscores the need to rebuild TB screening and treatment capacity in the wake of the pandemic and to identify and treat latent infections before they become contagious.