Rare Tick-Borne Disease ‘Rabbit Fever’ Suspected in New York

The Suffolk County Department of Health (SCDHS) in New York said Monday that there’s been three probable cases of tularemia, a rare but serious infection that’s also known as rabbit fever, on Long Island. It can occur after a bite from a tick or a fly that has previously bitten a sick mammal, typically a rabbit, Axios reported.

The rare illness can be caught while lawnmowing and comes at a time when tick-borne illnesses are sharply rising in the United States. As CMM previously reported, emergency department visits for tick bites have reached their highest levels for this time of year since 2017.

SCDHS currently has three probable cases of tularemia this year. Confirmation of a tularemia diagnosis requires a combination of laboratory testing and fulfillment of specific clinical or epidemiologic criteria. The laboratory testing to confirm a tularemia diagnosis may take several weeks. Suffolk County has reported multiple cases of rabbit fever over the years, with four in 2024 and three in 2023, per the county’s health data.

Tularemia has been reported from all states except Hawaii but is most common in the south-central United States, the Pacific Northwest, and parts of Massachusetts, including Martha’s Vineyard, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Tularemia occurs in people of all ages but is most common in children. From 2015 to 2023, the CDC has confirmed between 315 and 150 cases per year.