CDC calls MERS risk low despite new case in U.S.

NEW YORK — Health officials have reported what appears to be the first time that a mysterious Middle East virus has spread from one person to another in the United States.

An Illinois man probably picked up an infection from an Indiana man who earlier this month became the first U.S. case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

The Illinois man, however, never needed medical treatment and is reported to be feeling well, officials at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said .

The two men met twice before the Indiana man fell ill and was hospitalized in Munster, Ind., shortly after traveling from Saudi Arabia, where he lived and was employed as a health-care worker. Health officials say they think the virus spread during a 40-minute business meeting that involved no more contact than a handshake.

“We don’t think this changes the risk to the general public,” which remains low, said the CDC’s Dr. David Swerdlow.

The new report also is not considered evidence that the virus is spreading more easily among people than previously thought, Swerdlow said. The virus is not considered to be highly contagious, and health officials think it spreads from person to person only through close contact. Many of those who have gotten sick in the Middle East have been family members or healthcare workers caring for a MERS patient.

A second U.S. illness was confirmed last week, in a 44-year-old man from Saudi Arabia who was visiting Florida.

Saudi Arabia has been at the center of an outbreak of MERS that began two years ago. Overall, about 600 people have had the respiratory illness, and about 175 have died. All had ties to the Middle East or to people who traveled there.

There is no vaccine or cure, and there’s no specific treatment except to relieve symptoms, which include fever, cough and shortness of breath. Not all those exposed to the virus become ill.