White House denies that CDC cuts affected parasite outbreak
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the CDC and FDA “have the resources they need” to combat an outbreak of a diarrhea-causing parasite.
After thousands have been sickened by cyclosporiasis across the country, federal health officials say lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants has been linked to an outbreak of the stomach-churning parasitic infection.
The gastrointestinal illness, which can cause frequent, watery diarrhea or explosive bowel movements, nausea, cramps, bloating and low-grade fever, has sickened people in 34 states.
In Michigan, at least 102 people have been hospitalized since June 22 and 4,312 cases have been reported statewide, the state’s health department said Thursday.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday that the “White House is closely monitoring the situation.”
When asked whether cuts to public health have slowed the response to the outbreak in any way, Leavitt said “not at all,” adding that the FDA and CDC have “the resources they need to make sure that Americans are fully informed and protected from this illness during this time.” Experts have said otherwise.
Is iceberg lettuce linked to the outbreak?
An investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and state health officials has linked shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia to an outbreak.
The FDA’s traceback investigation has identified a single supplier of iceberg lettuce from Mexico used by these Taco Bell locations, the agencies said late Thursday, July 16.
Health officials have not named the supplier for Taco Bell. USA TODAY has reached out to HHS, CDC and FDA for comment.
Do you need a stool test for diagnosis?
The CDC advises those who believe they are infected to see a doctor for testing and treatment.
“Unless you get a stool test, specifically a GI pathogen panel and it comes back positive, a doctor will not know how to treat it. Without the test, it could be viewed as bacterial or viral diarrhea,” Dr. Anil Sharma, an associate professor in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition at the University of Florida College of Medicine, previously told USA TODAY.
Most cyclospora cases are being diagnosed through culture-independent diagnostic testing, which are PCR-based panels that can screen for about 20 different pathogens at the same time, explained Craig Hedberg, a professor with the University of Minnesota’s Division of Environmental Health Sciences, on a media briefing Thursday.
“These panels are much more widely used today than they were 10 years ago. So we have much better ability to pick up these infections at the clinical level than we used to have,” he added.
Contributing: Mike Snider and Thao Nguyen, USA TODAY