Puan Warns Not to Take Hantavirus Lightly: Don't Let It Spread Like Covid

Jakarta – House of Representatives Speaker Puan Maharani has called on the government to take anticipatory action regarding the buzz surrounding Hantavirus. She warned that the potential spread of the virus should not be taken lightly, lest it develops into a widespread pandemic like Covid-19. “Don’t let it be dismissed as something that doesn’t need anticipation and mitigation, only for it to expand and lead to unwanted consequences like what happened during Covid,” Puan told reporters at the parliamentary complex in Jakarta on Tuesday, 12 May 2026. The PDIP DPP leader assessed that all forms of viruses with the potential to spread widely or easily must be anticipated as early as possible, including by tightening preventive gateways. “Anything related to viruses that could later expand or become easily contaminated should be anticipated from the start,” she explained. Furthermore, Puan stated that her side would hold a meeting with relevant stakeholders to request explanations on Hantavirus prevention. “As today marks the opening of the parliamentary session, the relevant commissions will certainly request explanations from the related stakeholders to carry out preventions or anticipations regarding this matter,” she concluded. For information, the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) has assured that it has strengthened its screening and health surveillance systems to address the potential threat. This was conveyed by Indonesian Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin. He stated that the government is continuously monitoring the development of Hantavirus cases on the cruise ship in question. According to him, the virus spread remains concentrated in the ship area and has not yet extended to various countries. “It’s still concentrated on that ship. So it hasn’t spread anywhere. What we’re doing is preparing so that we have the screening,” said Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin in Jakarta on Thursday, 7 May 2026. Budi explained that the form of screening being prepared by the government could include rapid tests like during the Covid-19 pandemic or the use of reagents in PCR machines to detect Hantavirus infections.