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Two dead due to significant hepatitis A outbreak in Tennessee

In this Jan. 12, 2018, file photo, a medical assistant at a community health center gives a patient a flu shot in Seattle. A newer kind of flu vaccine worked a little bit better in seniors this past winter than traditional shots, the government reported Wednesday, June 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
In this Jan. 12, 2018, file photo, a medical assistant at a community health center gives a patient a flu shot in Seattle. A newer kind of flu vaccine worked a little bit better in seniors this past winter than traditional shots, the government reported Wednesday, June 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File) In this Jan. 12, 2018, file photo, a medical assistant at a community health center gives a patient a flu shot in Seattle. A newer kind of flu vaccine worked a little bit better in seniors this past winter than traditional shots, the government reported Wednesday, June 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

By Elizabeth Fite 3 min read

Health department officials say Chattanooga’s hepatitis A outbreak shows no sign of slowing despite six months of aggressive, communitywide education and vaccination efforts.

So far this year, two deaths and more than 500 hepatitis A cases have been confirmed in Tennessee, with Hamilton County currently reporting 55 cases.

The cases are part of multistate outbreak that likely began in California last year. In Tennessee, the Mid-Cumberland region around Nashville has been hit hardest. Neighboring Kentucky has reported 2,769 cases – the most of any state – with more than 1,400 hospitalizations and 17 deaths as of Nov. 17.

“We’ve been telling ourselves this is not a sprint – this is a marathon,” Diana Kreider, director of clinical services at the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, said during a Regional Health Council meeting Monday.

Hamilton County’s first known case occurred in May 2018, with a “steady trickle” of cases since, said Connie Buecker, communicable disease clinic program manager at the health department. Typically, the county sees none or one case of hepatitis A per year.