Hepatitis A Outbreak
On Jan. 23, 2018, the County ended the local health emergency, declared on September 1, 2017, in response to the local hepatitis A outbreak. The action does not mean the outbreak is over, and the County will continue efforts it has taken to control the spread of the disease.
Anyone who received their first hepatitis vaccination before mid-September, 2017, should get a second dose now to complete the series and assure long-term protection. Although the first dose of the vaccine is considered to be around 95 percent effective, that protection will eventually begin to decrease and a second shot boosts immunity for between 20 and 40 years, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The outbreak is being spread person-to-person and through contact with fecally contaminated environments. The majority of people who have contracted hepatitis A during this outbreak have been homeless and/or illicit drug users.
San Diego County Hepatitis A Outbreak Cases and Deaths:
Data
reported through October 3, 2018 and posted on October 9,
2018*
*Please note that table below will be updated
every other Tuesday. Table does not include all reported hepatitis A
cases in the county; only those that are local-outbreak-related.
Also, data are provisional and subject to change.
| Cases | Hospitalizations | Deaths |
| 592 | 407 (68%) | 20 (3.4%) |
Please note that cases are listed in the jurisdictions (counties) where they live. The table and map below will be updated once per month until further notice. Also, table and map below do not include all reported hepatitis A cases in the county; only those that are local-outbreak-related. Data are provisional and subject to change.
Vaccination Efforts
Vaccination efforts are underway targeting at-risk groups by County public health and our community health care partners. Because of the outbreak, the hepatitis A vaccine has now been recommended for people who are homeless, illicit drug users, staff at homeless service providers and substance use treatment agencies, public safety and emergency workers, health care workers and sanitation workers.
San Diego County Hepatitis A Vaccinations as of October 3,
2018*
*Please note that table below will be updated
once per month until further notice. Also, table does not include
all reported hepatitis A cases in the county; only those that are
local-outbreak-related. Data are provisional and subject to change.
| Vaccinations: | 203,858 |
Please note that map below will be updated once per month until further notice. Also, map below do not include all reported hepatitis A cases in the county; only those that are local-outbreak-related. Data are provisional and subject to change.
Hygiene Kits
As part of its hepatitis A infection prevention efforts, the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency has hygiene kits available to help promote handwashing (pictured right). These kits contain hand sanitizer (as available), cleansing wipes, bottled water, an informational flyer, and a waste bag. The kits are being provided to community partners that serve homeless persons and illicit drug users who are at risk for hepatitis A infection and who have limited access to handwashing facilities. When distributing kits to clients, community partners are encouraged to also recommend the hepatitis A vaccination.
San Diego County Hepatitis A Hygiene Kits of October 3, 2018*
*Table and maps will be updated once per month beginning in March until further notice.
Hygiene kits were available throughout the local emergency to support sanitation efforts and help promote handwashing. The kits, which contained hand sanitizer (as available), cleansing wipes, bottled water, an informational flyer, and a waste bag, were provided to community partners that serve homeless persons and illicit drug users who are at risk for hepatitis A infection and who have limited access to handwashing facilities. Hygiene kits were used in conjunction with strong recommendations to receive hepatitis A vaccination. A limited supply of hygiene kits may be made available to community partners serving homeless persons upon request.
| Kits Distributed: | 11,993 |
County News Center Stories
- Potential Hepatitis A Exposure at Treatment Center (July 6, 2018)
- Free Hepatitis A Vaccination Event in El Cajon (June 18, 2018)
-
County Releases Hepatitis A Outbreak After Action
Report (May, 10, 2018)
- Events Scheduled for Second Dose of Hepatitis A Vaccine (March 24, 2018)
- Is it Time for Your Second Dose of Hepatitis A Vaccine? (March 14, 2018)
- County Ends Local Health Emergency Declared for Hepatitis A Outbreak (January 23, 2018)
- Hepatitis A Emergency Winding Down (January 2, 2018)
- New Hepatitis A Cases Drop Significantly (December 19, 2017)
- Hepatitis A Cases Down Again; Emergency Continues (December 5, 2017)
- Hepatitis A Outbreak Slows; Health Emergency Continues (November 27, 2017)
- Hepatitis A Outbreak is Showing Signs of Slowing (November 14, 2017)
- Local Hepatitis A Public Health Emergency Extended Again (November 6, 2017)
- Hepatitis A Outbreak Update (October 24, 2017)
- Hep A Emergency Declaration Extended Again (October 10, 2017)
- One Shot of Hep A Vaccine Can Stop Outbreak (October 6, 2017)
- Board of Supervisors Extends Local Health Emergency (September 26, 2017)
- Hepatitis A Case Reported at Pacific Beach Restaurant (September 15, 2017)
- Local Public Health Emergency for Hepatitis A Outbreak Ratified by Board of Supervisors (September 6, 2017)
- New Vaccination Recommendations Issued for Hepatitis A Outbreak (August 25, 2017)
- More Hepatitis A Outbreak Deaths Reported (July 28,2017)
- Fifth Death Reported in Hepatitis A Outbreak (July 12, 2017)
- Hitting the Streets to Battle the Hepatitis A Outbreak (June 27, 2017)
- Fourth Death Reported in Continued Hepatitis A Outbreak (June 12, 2017)
- Third Hepatitis A Death Reported in County (May 5, 2017)
- 2 Hepatitis A Deaths Reported; Virus on the Rise in San Diego (April 7, 2017)
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