Hepatitis A : San Diego faces a public health emergency

Nathan Rupert/Flickr

Published the 04.09.2017 at 16: 37

A A

Keywords :

hepatitis AEtats-Unisépidémie

To great evils, great remedies. The city of San Diego has declared a public health emergency to combat the epidemic of hepatitis Has been raging on its territory. Since the month of November, nearly 380 people have been infected by the virus. 15 of them died from the infection.

Stated that September 1st, the state of emergency allows the County to seek aid from the State of California in its fight against hepatitis A. Without waiting for the intervention of the governor, the means of prevention have been made immediately after the announcement.

An intensive program

The epidemic affects populations that are particularly fragile. 70 % of diagnosed cases involve people who are homeless, or users of injection drugs. The virus is spreading because of a lack of hygiene, the municipality has planned to distribute portable stations hand hygiene.

The neighborhoods of San Diego that are home to the most homeless will receive these devices soon. During the weekend of 2 September, 40 stations have been distributed in the areas at risk. The officers of the city have also cleaned the sidewalks with bleach, in order to eradicate the hepatitis A virus is able to persist on certain surfaces.

By applying this program, the municipality of california, is directly inspired by its neighbours. Los Angeles, in particular, has managed to significantly reduce the spread of the virus on its soil.