As Philadelphia prepares for a four-day convention in the heat of July, some residents are recalling another convention forty years ago and hoping that news will be made by politicians rather than CDC officials. The American Legion convention of July 21-24, 1976, where over 200 people were sickened and 34 died, is now remembered for sparking the first public health crisis covered by modern mass media. In an opinion piece for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Marc Weingarten of Locks Law Firm discusses the discovery of the disease and its implications on public health funding and research. The suffering of those who…
Reports from the Cook County Sheriff’s Office state that an inmate at the Cook County Jail in Chicago has been diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease. The inmate had originally been hospitalized on July 6 with symptoms resembling pneumonia, and he eventually tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. Officials say that this is an isolated incident and that none of the man’s cellmates or members of the prison staff have demonstrated symptoms. Still, they have moved the inmate to Stroger Hospital in Chicago, and facilities managers are investigating potential sources of the disease. Check our blog for updates to this story. Jules Zacher is an…
Legislation mandating that hospitals conduct routine tests for Legionella has paid off in Australia, where a Queensland hospital caught the bacteria in its water supply before patients were infected. A deadly outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in 2013 prompted lawmakers to require that hospitals perform regular tests for Legionella. As a result of such tests, the Cunnamulla Hospital in southwestern Queensland reported last week that its water system contained Legionella bacteria. Hospital officials responded by chlorinating the water system, replacing water fixtures, and retesting the water supply. Thanks to the mandatory tests and the quick action of the hospital officials, no…
More people have been sickened by Legionnaires’ disease at a condominium in Ocean Park, Maryland. The Golden Sands Club Condominium reported the second round of cases in less than a year. Last November, four people who had previously stayed at the Golden Sands Club Condominium were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease. The guests had stayed at the large beachfront complex during October 2015. Though the outbreak was never officially linked to the condominiums, facility managers tested the water there and found Legionella bacteria. Managers installed a water treatment system in April in an attempt to control the bacteria. They also notified…
Legionella bacteria in the water supply of the Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh likely caused a cancer patient to contract Legionnaires’ disease. Officials previously believed that the patient, now recovered, had contracted the illness elsewhere, but new tests show that the bacteria originated in the hospital. After a cancer patient who had previously been treated at the hospital was readmitted with respiratory problems at the end of May, doctors tested the patient for Legionnaires’ disease. (Click here for our original blog post on this story.) The test was positive, and the patient was treated and made a full recovery. At the…
Image Credit: Zach Gibson/The New York Times Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Gina McCarthy attended a house hearing today regarding the water crisis in Flint, MI. The hearing was intended to clarify some of the circumstances surrounding the water crisis, and give both the governor and EPA a chance to publicly speak about their perspective. While appearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Governor Snyder admitted that the Flint water crisis was a result of a “failure of government at all levels”. This statement served two purposes for Governor Snyder: it…