Health · CDC data · ArchiveCyclosporiasis Hits Record 4,173 Cases as RFK Jr. Claims ControlAired July 22, 2026 at 5:17 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00Health officials are calling it the0:01worst outbreak of a parasitic infection0:03the United States has ever seen, and0:05tonight the government's top health0:06official says it is under control. The0:08CDC has confirmed more than 4,1000:11domestically acquired Cyclosporiasis0:13cases since May 1st, making this the0:15worst year on record. At least 3000:17people have been hospitalized, and more0:18than 34 states have reported cases. But0:21HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.0:24insists the situation is handled.0:33The numbers tell a stark story. More0:36than 4,100 confirmed cases nationwide0:39since May, the highest ever recorded.0:41Michigan alone reporting over 6,5000:44cases, over 300 hospitalizations, and0:46yet Secretary Kennedy told reporters the0:48outbreak is under control and that0:50investigators have identified the0:51source. The data suggests otherwise. The0:54outbreak stretches across 34 states, but0:56five states are bearing the worst of it.0:58Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and1:01West Virginia. The suspected source1:03points back to Central Mexico. Taylor1:05Farms imported iceberg lettuce from1:07there, and voluntarily recalled it1:09across 27 states. But here is where the1:11investigation gets complicated. The FDA1:14initially reported a positive Cyclospora1:16test on Taylor Farms lettuce, calling it1:17a breakthrough.1:19Then on July 19th, they retracted it a1:21false positive. The investigation is1:23back to square one. And the timing of1:25that retraction came just weeks after1:27the CDC made Cyclosporiasis reporting1:29optional effective July 1st of last1:31year. Only salmonella and E. coli remain1:33mandatory. Here's the timeline. Last1:36July, the CDC made Cyclosporiasis1:38reporting optional, then the outbreak1:40hits in May. The FDA announces a1:42breakthrough on the source, then this1:44past Sunday a retraction. False1:46positive, back to zero. Secretary1:48Kennedy has pushed back against1:50criticism arguing the cuts targeted only1:52redundant surveillance, and do not1:54explain the record outbreak numbers. But1:56lawmakers from both parties are raising1:58alarms.1:59The CDC building in Atlanta, the agency2:01tasked with tracking this outbreak, now2:03operating with Cyclospora surveillance2:05made optional. And the lettuce fields in2:07Mexico where investigators believe the2:09outbreak began, though without a2:11confirmed source, the recall remains a2:13precaution, not a resolution. Tonight,2:154,100 Americans have fallen ill. At2:19least 300 have been hospitalized. The2:21source is unknown. And the nation's top2:23health official says it is under2:24control. The numbers say otherwise.Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗