Russia's plague outbreak is getting worse, now with 5 hospitals in Irkutsk quarantined, universities canceling classes and accusations from healthcare workers that the government is attempting a media cover-up. Nearly 200 contacts of a 28-year-old anti-plague laboratory worker who died last week are reportedly under isolation or medical observation. Irkutsk universities are canceling classes citing a “case of pneumonic plague,” while an aluminum plant introduced mandatory masks. A local government warning advising residents not to travel to Shelekhov was published and later deleted. Healthcare workers claim doctors are discussing plague internally while avoiding the diagnosis in official documents. Russian health authorities continue to deny any plague outbreak, attributing the woman's death to “pneumonia of unknown origin.” Pneumonic plague is far worse that it's Bubonic cousin as its transmitted directly between humans.