A drug-resistant fungus known as Candida auris is making headlines again after cases were reported across numerous U.S. states. The words “deadly fungus” understandably sound alarming, but there is an important part of the story that often gets lost in viral posts: most healthy people are not considered at significant risk.
There is also an important update to the headline. Reports initially referred to cases in 23 states, but newer CDC surveillance cited by ABC News showed Candida auris had been detected in 27 states in 2026, with 3,437 clinical cases identified through the week ending July 25.
So what exactly is Candida auris, why are health officials concerned about it, and who actually needs to take precautions?
What Is Candida Auris?
Candida auris, or C. auris, is an emerging species of yeast capable of causing serious infections, particularly in people who are already critically ill.
Unlike the Candida species commonly associated with ordinary yeast infections, C. auris has become a public-health concern because it can spread efficiently between patients in healthcare facilities and is often resistant to antifungal medications.
It can cause infections involving the bloodstream, wounds and other parts of the body. Some people, however, can carry the fungus on their skin without becoming sick. This is known as colonization.
Colonized people can still spread C. auris to surfaces and other vulnerable patients.
Why Are Health Officials So Concerned?
Three characteristics make Candida auris especially challenging.
First, it can survive for extended periods on surfaces in healthcare environments, including bedrails, bedside tables, doorknobs and shared medical equipment. Not every conventional disinfectant reliably eliminates it.
Second, the fungus can be difficult to identify correctly without specialized laboratory techniques. Accurate diagnosis may require technologies such as mass spectrometry or sequencing.
Third—and perhaps most concerning—C. auris frequently demonstrates antifungal resistance.
CDC data indicate that roughly 90% of tested U.S. isolates have shown resistance to fluconazole and about 30% to amphotericin B, while resistance to echinocandins remains much less common. Rare isolates resistant to all three major antifungal classes have also been identified.
That resistance makes some infections much harder to treat.
Who Is Actually Most at Risk?
This is the distinction everyone reading alarming headlines should understand.
According to the CDC, people without established risk factors generally do not become infected or colonized with Candida auris.
The people at greatest risk are typically already receiving significant medical care.
People Who Are Seriously Ill or Hospitalized
C. auris primarily affects people with severe underlying health problems who require complex medical treatment, particularly those spending long periods in hospitals or long-term healthcare facilities.
This is very different from a respiratory virus circulating freely through everyday community settings.
People With Medical Tubes or Catheters
Invasive medical devices can provide pathways for microorganisms to enter the body.
Higher-risk devices include:
- central intravenous lines
- urinary catheters
- feeding tubes
- breathing tubes and ventilators
Patients requiring these devices are among the groups CDC specifically identifies as being at increased risk for C. auris infection.
Nursing Home and Long-Term Care Patients
Long-term care facilities can contain many of the same risk factors found in hospitals: frequent antibiotic exposure, complex medical conditions, wounds and invasive devices.
Movement of colonized patients between healthcare facilities can also contribute to outbreaks because someone may continue carrying C. auris for weeks, months or longer without symptoms.
People With Extensive Antibiotic or Antifungal Exposure
Antibiotics are sometimes lifesaving, but unnecessary or prolonged antimicrobial use can disrupt the body’s microbial ecosystem and select for resistant organisms.
The CDC identifies prolonged antibiotic and antifungal exposure as another factor associated with increased C. auris infection or colonization risk.
This is another reason appropriate antimicrobial stewardship matters.
Should Healthy People Be Worried?
For the average healthy person going to work, shopping, exercising or spending time with family, C. auris is not currently considered a major everyday threat.
CDC guidance specifically states that people without major risk factors generally do not become infected or colonized, and routine screening of family members, visitors or healthcare workers is usually unnecessary.
That does not mean public-health officials can ignore the fungus.
Its ability to persist in healthcare facilities and develop drug resistance makes controlling outbreaks extremely important because the people exposed in those environments may already be medically vulnerable.
What Symptoms Can Candida Auris Cause?
There is no single symptom that clearly identifies C. auris.
Symptoms depend on where the infection occurs and may resemble many other infections. Fever or chills can occur, particularly with invasive infections, but they are obviously not specific to this fungus.
C. auris may infect the:
- bloodstream
- wounds
- ears
- urinary tract
- other invasive body sites
Someone who is merely colonized may have no symptoms at all.
For that reason, specialized testing—not symptoms alone—is necessary for diagnosis.
How Does Candida Auris Spread?
C. auris primarily spreads within healthcare environments.
An infected or colonized patient can shed the fungus onto nearby objects. Another vulnerable patient may then acquire it through contaminated equipment, surfaces or contact.
The organism’s ability to remain on surfaces for long periods is one reason hospitals must use appropriate disinfectants and rigorous infection-control protocols.
CDC recommendations include careful hand hygiene, patient precautions, environmental cleaning and appropriate use of gloves and gowns.
How Is Candida Auris Treated?
For most adults and children older than two months with active C. auris infection, CDC guidance generally recommends an antifungal class called echinocandins as initial therapy.
Treatment may need to be adjusted according to laboratory susceptibility results and the patient’s response.
Importantly, being colonized is different from having an active infection. People carrying C. auris without symptoms generally do not receive antifungal treatment simply to eliminate colonization, and the CDC currently states that no reliably effective decolonization strategy has been established.
Can Natural Remedies Prevent Candida Auris?
From a holistic-health perspective, it is reasonable to support the foundations of overall health through adequate sleep, nutritious food, regular movement, stress management and appropriate management of chronic conditions.
But these practices should not be confused with treatment for a multidrug-resistant invasive fungal infection.
There is currently no established herbal remedy, essential oil, supplement or “Candida cleanse” shown to prevent or treat invasive Candida auris infection in humans. The evidence-based response focuses on infection control, diagnosis and appropriate antifungal therapy.
In particular, someone with a serious infection should never delay medical treatment while experimenting with home remedies.
What Can Families Do?
If you are visiting someone in a hospital or nursing facility, ordinary infection-control habits matter more than complicated protocols.
Clean your hands before and after visiting, especially after touching medical equipment or helping with personal care. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is preferred in many healthcare situations, while soap and water should be used when hands are visibly soiled.
If someone has previously tested positive for C. auris, that history should be communicated whenever they are transferred to another hospital, rehabilitation center, nursing home or other healthcare facility.
Patients returning home with catheters, wound-care equipment or other invasive devices should carefully follow their healthcare team’s cleaning and handling instructions.
The Bigger Picture
Candida auris deserves attention—not panic.
The fungus has continued spreading geographically in the United States, and CDC surveillance confirms that clinical cases have increased nationally over time. However, the rate of increase has slowed since 2022, and public-health interventions have successfully limited transmission in some areas.
The real concern is concentrated among people who are already medically vulnerable: patients with severe illnesses, prolonged healthcare exposure and invasive medical devices.
For everyone else, the message is far less frightening than the headline suggests.
C. auris is a serious healthcare-associated pathogen, but it is not currently a fungus that most healthy people should expect to encounter in ordinary daily life.
