New York confirms first case of rare tick-borne Bourbon virus in Long Island man

New York confirms its first case of the rare, tick-borne Bourbon virus in a 67-year-old Long Island man, Michael Larkin, five years after he was hospitalized for severe symptoms following a tick bite. The virus, spread by the Lone Star tick, has no vaccine or specific treatment. Experts warn this case may be the 'tip of the iceberg' due to a lack of commercial testing and the expanding tick population.

First New York Bourbon case

• ▪A 67-year-old man from Shirley, Long Island, named Michael Larkin, is New York's first confirmed human case of the Bourbon virus
• ▪Larkin's symptoms included high fevers, severe headaches, rashes, and night sweats, leading to a five-day hospitalization at Stony Brook University Hospital
• ▪Michael Larkin was bitten by ticks in his backyard in May 2021 but was not officially diagnosed with the virus until May 2026

Bourbon virus transmission mechanisms

• ▪The virus is transmitted to humans by the bite of the Lone Star tick
• ▪Antibiotics are ineffective against the Bourbon virus because it is a viral infection, not bacterial
• ▪There is no vaccine or specific antiviral medicine to treat the Bourbon virus; care is supportive and manages symptoms
• ▪The Bourbon virus was first discovered in 2014 in Bourbon County, Kansas

Limited commercial diagnostic testing

• ▪Larkin's diagnosis was confirmed through specialized testing by the New York State Department of Health's Wadsworth Center
• ▪Standard commercial labs do not have tests for the Bourbon virus, requiring specialized labs for diagnosis

Underreporting of actual cases

• ▪As of January 2026, a case study reported only six confirmed cases of Bourbon virus in the U.S.
• ▪Experts believe the number of actual cases is much higher than reported, with one doctor calling the confirmed cases "the very tip of the iceberg."
• ▪In 2019, the Bourbon virus was detected in a tick from a Long Islander, but it was unknown if that person was infected

Expanding Long Island tick populations

• ▪The Lone Star tick, which carries the Bourbon virus, has expanded its population across the Northeast
• ▪The Lone Star tick is one of the most common ticks on Long Island

Stony Brook hospitalized patient study

• ▪The Stony Brook study enrolled over 200 people between 2019 and 2024, screening blood samples for rare viruses including Bourbon, Powassan, and Heartland
• ▪Dr. Luis Marcos of Stony Brook Medicine identified Larkin's case as part of a long-term study of patients hospitalized with tick-borne illness symptoms