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Martin County, Florida – On Friday, the Florida Department of Health in Martin County announced the number of
confirmed cases of hepatitis A have increased to 13 since January.
Eight of these cases have been confirmed since April 1 st.
RELATED: Growing Concerns in Martin Co.'s Parents After Hepatitis A Outbreak
At present, the Department of Health is working with other county agencies to determine if there is a source of disease that can be discovered.
Martin County is now considered among counties across the country that are at high risk of contracting the virus.
Health officials have confirmed that eight people have died of the virus in Florida since 2018.
Watch the Friday press conference in the video player below (35 minutes):
According to the medical examiner, a lawyer from Palm City and his wife were found dead at home at the end of March after contracting hepatitis A.
WPTV discovered that a second couple living in the same street Sunset Trace, in the same block, had also contracted hepatitis A.
"There is no effective source that we can isolate here in Martin County," said William Schobel, Fire Chief of Martin County.
But county officials want to try to find a source.
"My personal direction to the staff is to see if there are any trends. It's a logical question, "said Martin County Commissioner Ed Ciampi.
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder is also willing to assign deputy ministers to investigate or search for possible sources of illness.
"I offered all the services of the Martin County Sheriff's Office to help trace if the State Department got in the lead. We will be happy to help you, "said Snyder.
WAS THE PUBLIC NOTIFIED EARLY?
The Florida Health Department in Martin County confirmed that it knew, Monday, April 1, that the area was at high risk of hepatitis A.
The Martin County Sheriff's Office was notified of Tuesday, April 2 in the evening. The Ministry of Health has asked the security forces if they want to be kept informed of any updates. The sheriff's office asked for updates.
"As soon as we are able to inform and involve them, we do it," said Todd Reinhold of the Florida Department of Health in Martin County.
The Ministry of Health has indicated that it gives priority to the notification of high-risk populations.
The health department also communicated with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation and the Department of Agriculture, who can inform restaurants and grocery stores of the outbreak and highlight the good hygiene practices.
The Ministry of Health has not rolled out broader outreach efforts until Friday, after WPTV confirmed that hepatitis A was the cause of a Palm City couple's death .
Some county officials felt that the public should have been better informed because the homeless or inmates are not the only people to be diagnosed, including the Palm City couple.
Palm City residents also told WPTV that they would have regretted not having been informed of the outbreak earlier.
"I was alarmed by the fact that it was about people not part of the target group. We continue to talk about my prison. We continue to talk about the homeless, none of these people fit that, "Snyder said.
"When your friends and neighbors die, it raises concern," Ciampi said.
WPTV asked the health department why the community as a whole had been informed of the high-risk designation only four days after its confirmation.
"We try to do our best, and not spread a message that will cause fear in the community," Reinhold said.
"Once we recorded five cases on Monday, we tackled this high-risk population, which involves working with the sheriff and his prison to try to vaccinate this population, perhaps even the homeless population. Reinhold said.
The Ministry of Health did not clearly explain why the media had not been contacted until Friday, but said: "We are following protocol and procedures like everyone else."
The Department of Health is continuing its outreach efforts.
"We are working in this process. We are working on this plan. This is not complete, "Reinhold said.
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