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A lethal tuberculosis (TB) outbreak has ensued within a homeless shelter in a California hotel, resulting in one death and prompting health authorities to declare a public health emergency. The Department of Health and Human Services for Long Beach reported on Thursday that the outbreak, confined to the undisclosed hotel, has infected 14 people, hospitalizing nine. However, the wider public is not considered at significant risk.
The homeless population is particularly vulnerable due to housing insecurity, mental illnesses, substance misuse, and other health conditions. The health emergency has been declared to enhance the city’s capacity to intervene and manage the outbreak.
The Health Department is currently screening around 170 people who have potentially been exposed to TB through symptom review, blood or skin tests, and chest X-rays. As the screenings progress, health officials anticipate a rise in cases and contacts. Anyone diagnosed with active or latent TB will receive treatment. The hotel’s identity has been withheld to adhere to patient confidentiality laws and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.
Tuberculosis, an airborne disease primarily affecting the lungs, but can also impact the kidney, spine, and brain, is transmitted via respiratory droplets but is less contagious than COVID. The number of U.S. tuberculosis cases in 2023 was the highest within a decade, with cases ranging from 8,320 in 2022 to 9,615 in 2023, an increase across all age groups.
The current outbreak follows recent reports of a minor number of TB cases cropping up in migrant shelters in Chicago.
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