A public health emergency has been declared in Long Beach, California, after a person has died and nine people have been hospitalized due to a tuberculosis outbreak.
Long Beach’s health officer, Dr. Anissa Davis, declared the outbreak after fourteen people with active TB had been identified as of April 29.
“Why this city has declared a public health emergency”
— Beersaint (@USMC_Razorback) May 6, 2024
Lack of medical screening for immigrants – they’re bringing in a wave of diseases we eradicated decades ago.
All cases have been linked to a single-room-occupancy hotel.
“People who were staying at the hotel at the time or could have otherwise been exposed have been or will be contacted by the Health Department.” a Health Department statement said.
“Through the course of this investigation, staff have identified approximately 170 people who have likely been exposed to TB,” the statement said.
The Long Beach City Council expects to ratify the emergency declaration on Tuesday.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT❕ Today, our @LBHealthDept Officer Dr. Anissa Davis declared a local public health emergency to strengthen the City’s preparedness and ability to respond to a localized tuberculosis (TB) outbreak.
— City of Long Beach (@LongBeachCity) May 2, 2024
Click here. ℹ️ https://t.co/Y1AZJfikW0 pic.twitter.com/3aQpISuO0D
The Western Journal reported:
TB has been rising in California. California’s 2023 cases were 15 percent higher than its TB caseload in 2022, according to the Los Angeles Times. That is the highest year-over-year increase since 1989, according to the state Department of Public Health.
Live Science said that the microbe that causes tuberculosis can be dormant in a person, without any symptoms. Between 5 percent and 10 percent of the people with the bacteria develop TB.
“The outbreak is currently isolated to a distinct population,” the Health Department statement said.
“The population at risk in this outbreak has significant barriers to care, including homelessness and housing insecurity, mental illness, substance use, and serious medical comorbidities,” it said.
Tuberculosis is contracted through airborne particles.
However, it usually takes extensive exposure to a person who has active TB in order for the disease to spread.
Do you know the symptoms of #TB disease?
— CDC (@CDCgov) September 27, 2021
CDC’s new “Questions and Answers About TB” booklet has helpful info on how to diagnose and treat tuberculosis disease, and is now available in English, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese: https://t.co/nLCpacw9cm. pic.twitter.com/Q4ROhwUKMu
“You can catch tuberculosis if someone is coughing or sneezing or in close contact; the bacteria from those particles get into the air, and anybody nearby will breathe that in — and that’s how they pick it up, and that’s how they catch it,” Dr. Janette Nesheiwat of New York City said, according to Fox News.
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