False claims about a new 'China virus' are spreading like the plague

David Williams January 30, 2025
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Fears of hPMV leading to a new COVID-19-like pandemic are unfounded. Image by James Ross/AAP PHOTOS

WHAT WAS CLAIMED

China has declared a state of emergency over the “new” virus hMPV.

OUR VERDICT

False. The virus is not new and China hasn’t declared a state of emergency.

AAP FACTCHECK – An outbreak of a common virus in northern China has triggered false claims on social media that it's a new pathogen that could trigger a pandemic.

Experts say human metapneumovirus (hMPV) was first described more than 20 years ago and is a common illness.

A sharp rise in cases of flu-like hMPV in northern China in late December 2024 has sparked concerns among social media users.

A Facebook post's caption claims the "Chinese Health Ministery [sic]" has declared a state of emergency in response to an outbreak of hMPV, which the caption describes as a "new virus".

Fearmongering about hPMV is spreading on Facebook. (Facebook/AAP)

Some posts claim the virus emerged from China, while other posts claim the new disease has broken out like COVID: "The world is on the brink of a similar journey to Covid19, after the symptoms of a new virus called hMPV were seen in China."

An X post describes the emergence of hMPV as a "new pandemic": "Bill Gates warned about the imminence of another global pandemic and here we go."

HMPV, however, is not a new virus that has recently emerged in China.