On April 20, 2018, the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health sent Health Advisory #145 to health care providers, hospitals and other health care facilities. The state reported an increase in hepatitis A cases in some counties, mainly Kanawha and Putnam.
Lab tests linked several cases to a multistate outbreak of hepatitis A genotype 1B. Other cases were linked to cases in Kentucky. At that time, 17 West Virginia patients had been in four area hospitals. Many patients moved often, and many left the hospital against medical advice. This made follow-up hard for public health staff. Many patients also had hepatitis B or hepatitis C, and many had used methamphetamine or other illicit drugs.
Vaccine supply
Many states had large hepatitis A outbreaks, so the national vaccine supply was limited. The state worked with the CDC to send vaccine to the affected counties. The advisory said vaccine campaigns should target contacts of cases, people who were homeless and people who used illicit drugs.
What the state asked of providers
- Run a full hepatitis A, B and C blood test panel on patients with symptoms.
- Report suspected cases to the local health department at once.
- Tell patients that local health department staff will contact them.
- Offer hepatitis A vaccine to people who are homeless or use illicit drugs.
- Keep serum samples for more tests, which can include tests at the CDC.
The state also asked treatment centers, homeless shelters, harm reduction programs, free clinics and jails to help share information with people at high risk.
The outbreak grew through 2018. A CDC report later described the West Virginia outbreak among people who used drugs and people who were homeless. See Hepatitis A Clinics, Kanawha and Putnam hepatitis A clinics and Health Advisory #153 on the vaccine supply.
This guidance is from April 2018. It is kept here as a record and is not current advice. Check current guidance from the CDC or your doctor.