Category C agents include which examples?

• A. Emerging infectious diseases such as Nipah virus and hantavirus
• B. Anthrax
• C. Plague
• D. Smallpox

Answer: (A)

Category C agents are emerging pathogens that could potentially be engineered for dissemination in the future. Nipah virus and hantavirus fit this idea because they are relatively new or continuing emerging threats, often zoonotic, with outbreak potential and concerns about future misuse. They aren’t the proven, high-mamage agents that require urgent public health readiness on a broad scale, which places them in Category C rather than in the highest-priority category. In contrast, agents like anthrax, plague, and smallpox are well-known, highly transmissible or deadly, and carry a greater immediate risk, classifying them as Category A. So the choice that lists emerging infectious diseases such as Nipah virus and hantavirus is the correct one.