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Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/powassan-virus-new-hampshire-tick-borne-illness/
Rare tick-borne virus left New Hampshire man critically ill, "nonverbal"
By Aaron Parseghian
June 17, 2026 / 6:29 PM EDT / CBS Boston
Friends and family of a New Hampshire man are urging people to take precautions against ticks after a rare tick-borne virus left him critically ill and in the hospital for more than a month.
John Reagan, 66, an avid outdoorsman from New Hampshire, remains hospitalized in Boston after contracting Powassan virus, according to his longtime friend and Tom Wright.
"It's crushing a lot of people. It's sad," Wright said.
Condition deteriorated rapidly
Wright said Reagan's condition deteriorated rapidly after he was bitten by a tick, he believes, while he was walking his dog on Pembroke/Concord, New Hampshire line.
"When he first went into the emergency room, he was sitting up and talking to me, and I was there with his wife," Wright said. "And the next day, we went to see him, and he was like nonverbal, and his muscles wouldn't move right."..
Rare tick-borne virus left New Hampshire man critically ill, "nonverbal"
By Aaron Parseghian
June 17, 2026 / 6:29 PM EDT / CBS Boston
Friends and family of a New Hampshire man are urging people to take precautions against ticks after a rare tick-borne virus left him critically ill and in the hospital for more than a month.
John Reagan, 66, an avid outdoorsman from New Hampshire, remains hospitalized in Boston after contracting Powassan virus, according to his longtime friend and Tom Wright.
"It's crushing a lot of people. It's sad," Wright said.
Condition deteriorated rapidly
Wright said Reagan's condition deteriorated rapidly after he was bitten by a tick, he believes, while he was walking his dog on Pembroke/Concord, New Hampshire line.
"When he first went into the emergency room, he was sitting up and talking to me, and I was there with his wife," Wright said. "And the next day, we went to see him, and he was like nonverbal, and his muscles wouldn't move right."..