The United Nations health agency has moved to quell a growing global health scare, confirming that there is no widespread outbreak of the hantavirus. Reports of a new pandemic had sent shockwaves through financial markets and sparked panic buying of face masks, but the World Health Organization (WHO) has categorically stated that the cases being reported are isolated and not linked to any new wave of infection. For working families already battered by the cost-of-living crisis, the news offers a small reprieve from another potential blow to household budgets.

But the episode raises uncomfortable questions about how quickly misinformation can spread, and who pays the price when fear takes hold. The WHO’s swift response is a reminder that in an age of instant news, the truth often lags behind the panic. For those on the breadline, the real virus remains a flatlining wage and rising bills.

This is not a story about a new disease. It is a story about what happens when fear meets inequality.