Kremlin DENIES second infection after reported plague death

>> RUSSIA HAS REFUSED TO. ANNOUNCE THE PATHOGEN THAT. KILLED A YOUNG RESEARCHER AT. THE ANTI-PLAGUE INSTITUTE OF. SIBERIA MORE THAN A WEEK AGO. THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION. IS DEMANDING MORE INFORMATION. ABOUT A POSSIBLE SECOND. INCIDENT AT THE LAB WHICH THE. KREMLIN STRONGLY DENIES. WITH THAT LET'S BRING IN FORMER. C.D.C. DIRECTOR DR. ROBERT. REDFIELD AND ALSO MY COLLEAGUE. SOME SAY THIS COULD BE.

PNEUMONIC PLAGUE, WHAT DO YOU. THINK? >> THE NARRATIVE HAS BEEN. PLAGUE, I HAVE A COUPLE OF. PROBLEMS WITH THE NARRATIVE. SHE WAS WORKING IN A PLAGUE LAB. AND IF IT WAS WILDTIDE PLAGUE, YOU COULD BE TREATED AND LIKELY. WOULDN'T HAVE DIED.

IF IT WAS ENGINEERED PLAGUE, ENGINEERED TO BE RESISTANT TO. THE ANTIBIOTICS, THEY WOULDN'T. WORK AND IN THE ABSENT OF. TREATMENT, PLAGUE IS USUALLY. FATAL. THE OTHER CHALLENGE I HAVE, THE. RUSSIAN RESPONSE. IF YOU LOOK IN THE UNITED. STATES, WE HAVE SEVEN CASES OF. PLAGUE A YEAR LIKELY WITH. PRAIRIE DOGS AND OTHER RODENTS. IN THE WEST. WE HAD A CASE OF PNEUMONIC. PLAGUE IN ARIZONA IN '25, BUT. THE LAST CASE OF HUMAN TO HUMAN.

TRANSMISSION OF PLAGUE IN THE. UNITED STATES WAS IN 1924. SO PLAGUE ISN'T VERY. TRANSMISSIBLE HUME HUMAN TO. HUMAN, THE FACT THIS THEY. CLOSED FIVE HOSPITALS AND I'M. PERPLEXED BY THE RESPONSE AND. SUGGESTS IT COULD BE ANOTHER. KAYLEIGH: AND DOCTOR, YOU. MENTIONED IT COULD BE.

ENGINEERED PLAGUE, THAT'S CRAZY. TO THINK ABOUT. >> WELL, THAT PART OF THE. WORLD, I'VE BEEN THERE WHEN HE. WAS C.D.C. DIRECTOR, BOTH IN. GEORGIA AND KAZAKHSTAN IN THE. OLD SOVIET UNION. THEY HAD PLAGUE AND THEY WERE. IN THE DUAL USE, SPECIAL USE. PROGRAM AND THERE HAVE BEEN. PRETTY GOOD REPORTS FROM THE. OUTBREAK IN RUSSIA IN 1979.

WHERE ANTHRAX ESCAPED AND THE. ANTHRAX THAT ESCAPED WAS HIGHLY. RESISTANT TO ANTIBIOTICS IN A. NORMAL WAY SUGGESTING IT HAD. BEEN ENGINEERED. I DO THINK THERE ARE. UNFORTUNATELY BIODEFENSE, BIOWEAPONS PROGRAMS THAT DO. MODIFY SUSCEPTIBILITY OF THESE, BOTH PLAGUE ANTHRAX. AND IT COULD BE SOMEHOW TO BE.

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANT AND MORE. TRANSMISSIBLE HUMAN TO HUMAN. THE PUBLIC HEALTH RESPONSE TO. ME THAT RUSSIA DID DIDN'T ADD. UP. THEY CLOSED FOUR OR FIVE. HOSPITALS AND QUARANTINED. PEOPLE. THIS WOULDN'T BE WITH A NORMAL. PLAGUE. THE WHO AND C.D.C. AND THE. PRESIDENT WANTS THE RUSSIANS TO. TELL US WHAT'S GOING ON. THERE'S HEALTH REGULATION WHICH.

THEY SIGNED THEY WOULD BE. NOTIFIED FOR THE EVENTS BEEN 48. HOURS, AND THEY DIDN'T DO THAT. KAYLEIGH: THE MOTHER OF THIS. SAID THAT I KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. THE CLEVER ONES DOESN'T BELIEVE. IT AT ALL AND SHE BELIEVES. THERE'S MORE AT PLAY. THE C.D.C. SAYS THERE'S NONO. INDICATION OF A BROADER THREAT. TO THE UNITED STATES. ARE WE AT RISK HERE IN THE. U.S.? >> I WOULD AGREE WITH THAT. STATEMENT. I'VE BEEN IN TOUCH WITH THEM. AND I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY.

IMMEDIATE ---- I THINK THAT THE. CHALLENGE IS DID SHE DIE OF. PLAGUE OR AND WAS THERE A. SECONDARY CASE AS HAS BEEN. REPORTED AND WAS THAT ALSO. PLAGUE OR IS THIS A DIFFERENT. PATHOGEN. IS THIS SOMETHING LIKE, YOU. KNOW, LIKE A HAUNTA VIRUS THAT. CAN CUSS PULMONARY DISEASE. YOU REMEMBER THIS YEAR WE HAD.