Health officials in Rhode Island and Maine have confirmed new 2026 Powassan cases, adding to concerns about a tick-borne virus that reached its highest annual U.S. total last year.

The Rhode Island Department of Health reported that the patient, a man in his 60s from Providence County, began experiencing symptoms in May 2026, was hospitalized, and is now recovering at home. Days earlier, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed a case in a Penobscot County resident, the state’s first confirmed Powassan detection of 2026.

The new reports come after 76 Powassan cases were recorded nationwide in 2025, the highest annual total reported in the U.S., according to the Rhode Island Department of Health. Powassan is still far less common than illnesses like Lyme disease, but severe infections can lead to inflammation of the brain or spinal cord.