Ohio's Hepatitis A Outbreak - what you need to know!

The Ohio Department of Health and local public health agencies have been investigating and monitoring the current statewide hepatitis A outbreak. Hepatitis A is a very contagious liver infection that causes inflammation and can affect your liver's ability to function properly. This infection can be spread by: eating food that has been handled by someone who has not properly washed their hands drinking contaminated water eating food that has not been cooked or cleaned being in close contact with someone who has the hepatitis A virus sexual contact with someone that has the virus This particular situation is determined to be an outbreak due to the number of cases that have been reported just this year. As of January 28th, 2018 there have been: Number of cases: 1531 Illness onset range: 01/05/2018 – 01/21/2019 Age range: 2-81 years Gender: 60% male Number of hospitalizations: 957 (63%) Number of deaths: 5 The best way to stay protected against hepatitis A is to get a vaccination. The ODH Immunization Program will make available federally funded 317 adult hepatitis A vaccine to all Vaccines for Children (VFC) enrolled FQHCs for free.  FQHCs who are interested in obtaining adult hepatitis A vaccine for this outbreak must complete the Outbreak Response Immunization Agreement form. Please review the following guidance on hepatitis A vaccine eligibility and frequently asked questions (FAQs) prior to completing and submitting the agreement. Vaccine orders can be placed online via the ImpactSIIS Vaccine Ordering Management System (VOMS). A separate outbreak control order set has been created for FQHCs and RHCs. For accountability purposes, all administered doses must be submitted to ImpactSIIS. Helpful Links: ODH's response to the hepatitis A outbreak FQHCs Role in Ohio's Hepatitis A Outbreak Webinar FREE continuing education (CE) activity CDC hepatitis A outbreak website Hepatitis A Statewide Community Outbreak Hepatitis A Questions and Answers for Health Professionals For more information, please call the Ohio Department of Health Bureau of Infectious Diseases at (614) 995-5599. For up-to-date information about this outbreak, visit www.ohiochc.org/HepA