Fox News anchor John Roberts was hospitalized after contracting an uncommon vector-borne disease, according to a People Magazine exclusive.
What’s happening?
Roberts, 68, will not appear on Fox News viewers’ screens for the foreseeable future.
The Canadian-born co-host of Fox’s “America Reports” was away from his news desk earlier in August, visiting Indonesia on a two-week-long family trip. On Aug. 11, he tweeted a photo taken while diving, followed by a picture of his son hanging out with local kids on Aug. 12.
Roberts returned from the trip seemingly healthy and resumed his co-hosting duties. Within days, Roberts said, he began visibly “shivering” on air.
On Monday, Aug. 25, Roberts sought treatment. He was diagnosed with malaria, a mosquito-borne illness uncommon in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control, around 2,000 cases of malaria are diagnosed annually, the lion’s share being travel-related.
Roberts’ account of the time between the onset of his malaria symptoms and diagnosis illustrated how the illness rapidly manifested, roughly 10 days after he returned.
“I had been hurting from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. Literally everywhere. I was also beset with uncontrolled shivering all during my show,” he said. Roberts didn’t specify when the on-air shivering occurred, but he said it made him suspect he’d contracted influenza.
After a trip to the rheumatologist, Roberts was quickly sent to the emergency room as his symptoms worsened. Although he didn’t know where his case fell on the severity spectrum, Roberts emphasized that the illness was the sickest he’d ever felt.
“I don’t know exactly how ‘severe’ it was from a medical classification, but it sure felt severe. I have never felt that sick in my life,” the anchor recalled.
On Aug. 26, Roberts tweeted a thank you to Fox News personality Trace Gallagher for filling in on “America Reports” — adding that his case of malaria was the first his doctor had seen.
Why is this concerning?
Malaria is a vector-borne illness that is transmitted primarily through the bites of infected mosquitoes.
While malaria is largely linked to travel in the U.S., the illness is endemic in tropical and sub-tropical countries and climates.
Fox News is primarily filmed in Manhattan. Historically, New York City’s climate has been characterized by hot, humid summers and cold, snowy winters.
But in 2020, The New York Times reported that “rising temperatures, which are largely the result of human activity,” had shifted its climate to “subtropical,” per a National Climate Assessment.
In 2023, the Gates Foundation cautioned that an overheating planet lengthens transmission season and is “altering the malaria map.”
The following year, the United Nations Development Program warned that rising temperatures are “supercharging” malaria.
The UNDP referenced a 2022 extreme weather-linked outbreak in Pakistan, after “climate-driven mass flooding created large pools of stagnant water.”
What’s being done about it?
In August, three lawmakers filed a bipartisan bill in response to a rise in similar vector-borne illnesses spread by ticks.
In their assessment, the Gates Foundation implored governments to take climate mitigation seriously, adding that it was “more important than ever to work toward eradication with urgency.”
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