The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said more than 3,000 cases of Candida auris have been reported in 23 states so far this year, with Texas alone accounting for 706 cases as of July 18. The numbers show the drug-resistant fungus continuing to spread inside medical settings, where it can become deadly for patients already fighting serious illness.
Susan Huang said the pace is what has public health officials on edge. She pointed to a jump in positive screening cultures from 6,000 to 12,000 between 2022 and 2024, a sign that the fungus is appearing more often and spreading faster than before. The CDC also reported 2,882 cases nationwide in 2022, 4,428 in 2023 and 6,197 in 2024.
That rise matters because Candida auris is not a routine infection. Some strains resist all of the medicines normally used to treat fungal disease, and the organism can survive on surfaces for long periods before moving between patients through catheters, breathing tubes or IVs. Most cases have been reported in acute care facilities, and the burden has fallen largely on people ages 45 and older, with 88% of clinic fungal infection cases in that age group.
Texas has far more cases than most states, but the reason is not hard to trace. William Schaffner said the spread is limited to certain medical facilities, which means outbreaks can concentrate where vulnerable patients are treated and screened more aggressively. Michigan had 503 cases and Illinois had 366 as of July 18, a reminder that the problem is not isolated even if the counts vary sharply from state to state.
The hard part is that the fungus does not affect everyone the same way. Most healthy people can clear Candida auris on their own, but researchers have estimated that 30% to 60% of people who develop illnesses from it have died. That gap is why hospitals and nursing homes are being pushed to report cases quickly and screen patients before the fungus gets another chance to move through a ward.
Huang called the rapid emergence around the world and the speed of spread in the United States alarming, and the CDC’s numbers suggest that concern is justified. The next test is whether hospitals and nursing homes can keep finding cases early enough to stop the fungus from settling in where the sickest patients are least able to fight back.
