Measles News: 

• Pennsylvania reported Tuesday that two people died of measles in Lancaster County, the first measles deaths in the state for over 35 years and the first deaths in the U.S. this year. (CBS)
  
  
• Hotspots right now for new measles cases are PA (83), OH (42), and WI (26), with KY and IA close behind with 15+ each in the past week. (Yale SPH)
  
  
• New York state warned of increasing measles cases upstate, for a total of 29 cases so far this year. (Newsday)
  
  
• Heading back to school will almost certainly worsen the country’s already record-breaking measles outbreak. (Hill)
  
  
  
  

Health News:

• Common colds and COVID are both on the rise nationwide. (YLE)
  
  
• Two human infections of H1N2 swine flu were reported in Michigan, both in children who attended agricultural fairs. (CIDRAP)
  
  
• Australia's H1N1 avian flu outbreak in wild birds has crossed to mammals (seals) and is rapidly growing. (NY Times)
  
  
• A child in Louisiana was killed from a rare infection of freshwater-dwelling Naegleria fowleri, often called the “brain-eating amoeba.” (NBC)
  
  
• Florida confirmed a locally-acquired dengue case in Citrus County. (Florida Health)
  
  
• The alfalfa sprouts recall is linked to Salmonella and E. coli illnesses in 15 states. (NY Times)
  
  
• Congo’s Ebola outbreak recorded one of its worst weeks yet for the death toll, with over 300 new deaths. (AP)
  
  
• Mexican ranchers are preparing to resume cattle sales to the U.S. under stricter controls due to New World screwworm risk. (AP)
  
  

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Best Question:

Should we prepare hepatitis A and tetanus vaccines in advance of the next storm in Hawaii? 

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Hawaii is getting hammered this month, as Tropical Storm Moke is headed its way on the heels of Hurricane Lala. While thousands are still recovering from severe flooding and power outages, more floodwaters are expected, particularly on the Big Island.

We appreciate this question, which is a bit old school. There are two main vaccinations that your team might consider to help protect employees before a major storm like a hurricane: Hepatitis A and tetanus. In both cases, flooding doesn’t actually increase the risk for either disease, though it does mean that any wounds (which are more common after disasters) are likely to be contaminated. Anyone who has had a tetanus booster (TdP or TdaP included) is protected for up to 10 years, and Hep A is generally just a two-dose vaccination to protect someone for life. 

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In light of the limited risk (and, realistically, limited interest in uptake), a large vaccination campaign is not necessary in advance of a storm. But offering pharmacy vouchers to those who are out of date might be a smart proactive move ahead of a storm. ZHH can support your team in distributing pharmacy vouchers that allow your team to walk into major pharmacies (like Walmart) to get a free dose if they’re interested. Let us know if we can help, and stay safe out there! 

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Sources: NPR, CIDRAP, LSU

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Best Read:

We’ve been getting this question a LOT this summer, and appreciated this nuanced explanation from Katelyn Jetelina at YLE: 

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Spotlight: Are we having a higher rate of foodborne illness outbreaks? - YLE 

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