Hepatitis A Exposure Response and Outbreak Prevention in a Large Urban Jail - Los Angeles County, California, May-July 2023

Abstract

Correctional settings provide a high-risk environment for hepatitis A transmission because of the high proportion of homelessness and injection drug use among persons who are incarcerated. On May 30, 2023, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health informed the Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control (CDSC) unit of the Los Angeles County Jail system that a symptomatic incarcerated person had received a positive test result for acute hepatitis A. Upon learning the next day that the patient was a food handler, CDSC staff members identified 5,830 potential contacts of the index patient, 1,702 of whom had been released from the jail. During June 1-12, a total of 2,766 contacts who did not have a documented history of hepatitis A serology or vaccination that could be confirmed from the electronic health record or state immunization registry were identified. These persons were offered hepatitis A vaccination as postexposure prophylaxis; 1,510 (54.6%) accepted vaccination. Contacts who were food handlers without confirmed evidence of immunity and who declined vaccination were removed from food-handling duties for the duration of their potential incubation period. No additional cases were identified. Identifying contacts promptly and using immunization and serology records to ensure rapid delivery of postexposure prophylactic vaccine can help prevent hepatitis A transmission during exposures among incarcerated populations.

FIGURE 1

Timeline of hepatitis A exposure discovery and response by Correctional Health Services Communicable Disease and Surveillance Unit staff members — Los Angeles County, California, April–July 2023

FIGURE 2

Identification of contacts at Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail who were eligible to receive postexposure prophylaxis hepatitis A vaccine — Los Angeles County, California, May–July 2023 Abbreviations: LAC = Los Angeles County; MCJ = Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail.