{"id":821533,"date":"2026-08-22T00:26:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T00:26:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/821533\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T00:26:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T00:26:13","slug":"drug-resistant-fungus-in-ca-c-auris-cases-signs-prevention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/821533\/","title":{"rendered":"Drug-resistant fungus in CA: C. auris cases, signs, prevention"},"content":{"rendered":"

A deadly, drug-resistant \u201csuperbug\u201d is spreading across the United States \u2014 and California<\/a> has reported the most cases so far.<\/p>\n

More than 4,500 cases of Candida auris infections<\/a> have been reported nationwide so far in 2026, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n

The so-called \u201csuperbug\u201d<\/a> can cause severe infections that are often resistant to antifungal medications, the American Medical Association said, putting patients at hospitals and healthcare facilities in danger.<\/p>\n

According to the CDC, California has reported a total of 972 cases of Candida auris in 2026, the most of any U.S. state.<\/p>\n

California logged three cases of the fatal fungus during the week of Aug. 9, according to the most recent data from the CDC.<\/p>\n

In 2025, the California Department of Public Health had 2,530 cases of Candida auris<\/a>, which has steadily increased since 2019.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what to know about the fungal superbug \u2014 and how to keep your loved ones safe:<\/p>\n

\"An An illustration of Candida auris. The emerging species of yeast is spreading throughout the United States. peterschreiber.media Getty Images What is Candida auris?<\/p>\n

Candida auris is a type of yeast that can cause \u201csevere illness\u201d<\/a> and \u201cspreads easily among very sick patients in healthcare facilities,\u201d according to the CDC.<\/p>\n

The fungus can cause everything from skin infections to life-threatening bloodstream infections.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been \u201cresponsible for large outbreaks in California hospitals and skilled nursing facilities<\/a>,\u201d the California Department of Public Health said.<\/p>\n

Although C. auris infections are generally rare, healthcare providers consider them an \u201cemerging infectious disease<\/a>\u201d with cases spiking since 2019, the Cleveland Clinic said.<\/p>\n

California saw a total of 3,859 C. auris cases in 2025<\/a>, compared to 3,325 the previous year, according to tracking data from the state Public Health Department.<\/p>\n

Why is fungus considered dangerous?<\/p>\n

Canida auris is frequently resistant to antifungal medications, with the fungus developing the ability to \u201cdefeat the drugs designed to kill it,\u201d according to the CDC.<\/p>\n

\u201cResistant infections can be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to treat,\u201d the CDC said.<\/p>\n

From 2017 to 2022, 34% of cases of the fungal infection resulted in death<\/a>, the CDC said.<\/p>\n

What are symptoms of Candida auris infection?<\/p>\n

Symptoms of a Candida auris infection<\/a> can include the following, according to the Cleveland Clinic:<\/p>\n

FeverChillsLethargyLow blood pressure.High heart rateLow body temperaturePain, pressure or a feeling of fullness in your ear<\/p>\n

A Candida auris infection is best treated with antifungal medicines<\/a> such as Echinocandins<\/a>, the CDC and healthcare company Kaiser Permanente said, although infections often don\u2019t respond to just one drug.<\/p>\n

In severe cases, your doctor may give high does of more than one antifungal medicine.<\/p>\n

\"Candida Candida auris infections can range from superficial to life-threatening. Mladen Sladojevic Getty Images Who\u2019s at risk of infection?<\/p>\n

Candida auris usually affects patients with severe underlying medical conditions<\/a> and people with invasive medical devices such as breathing tubes, feeding tubes and catheters, according to the CDC.<\/p>\n

Patients can have the fungus can live on their skin or other parts of their body even if they don\u2019t have symptoms, the CDC said.<\/p>\n

It can also spread to other surfaces and objects.<\/p>\n

Healthcare providers and visitors aren\u2019t at risk of becoming infected, experts said.<\/p>\n

\"A Candida auris, a drug-resistant fungus, is mostly spread in medical facilities, health experts say. Luis Alvarez Getty Images How can hospitals prevent superbug from spreading?<\/p>\n

According to the CDC, healthcare providers can take the following steps to prevent the spread of Candida auris<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Frequent hand cleaning with alcohol-based sanitizerIsolation of patients with C. aurisConstant disinfecting of patients\u2019 roomsWearing gloves and gowns when delivering careCleaning of visitors\u2019 hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand sanitizerWhich US states have reported outbreaks?<\/p>\n

According to a CDC dashboard, there had been a total of 4,511 reported cases of Candida auris infections<\/a> across 28 states as of Aug. 15. These were all the states where infections have spread as of Aug. 15, according to CDC data:<\/p>\n

ArizonaCaliforniaColoradoGeorgiaIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMarylandMichiganMississippiNevadaNew JerseyNew MexicoNorth DakotaNorth CarolinaOhioOregonPennsylvaniaTennesseeTexasUtahVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsin<\/p>\n

Loading\u2026<\/p>\n

This story was originally published August 21, 2026 at 12:15 PM.<\/p>\n

Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Alexiah Syrai Olsen<\/a><\/p>\n

The Tribune<\/p>\n

Alexiah Syrai Olsen is a service journalism reporter for The Tribune in San Luis Obispo, California. She earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in journalism and design from The New School in New York City.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n

Don Sweeney<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n

Don Sweeney has been a newspaper reporter and editor in California for more than 35 years. He is a service reporter based at The Sacramento Bee.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A deadly, drug-resistant \u201csuperbug\u201d is spreading across the United States \u2014 and California has reported the most cases…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":821534,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[97],"class_list":["post-821533","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/821533","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=821533"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/821533\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/821534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=821533"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=821533"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=821533"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}