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

May 26, 2026

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.