Passengers on an American Airlines Flight Exposed to Hep A
Jackie Reddy October 10, 2019
Passengers on a recent American Airlines flight from San Francisco to Charlotte were vaccinated as a precautionary measure after it was revealed that they may have been exposed to hepatitis A. It is thought that the potential risk may have come from a crew member who is said to have an acute form of the disease.
Passengers on a recent American Airlines flight (AA) have been vaccinated after having been potentially exposed to hepatitis A, The Charlotte Observer reports. The potential exposure occurred on-board Charlotte-bound American Airlines Flight 1960 from San Francisco on September 21st.
The Charlotte Observer also states that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were alerted to the fact that a member of crew on the flight had been diagnosed with an acute form of the disease and had experienced diarrhea while working on a number of flights last month. According to information on the CDC’s website, hepatitis A, “…is usually transmitted person-to-person through the fecal-oral route or consumption of contaminated food or water.”
The Charlotte Observer says that all 18 passengers on the flight have been contacted and vaccinated as a precautionary measure.
Speaking on behalf of the Mecklenburg County Health Department last weekend, Rebecca Carter told the outlet, “The risk was only to the passengers on the flight. There was no risk to the public.”
Commenting for AA, spokeswoman Crystal Byrd said, “The safety of our customers and team members is our top priority. We are in close contact with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and public health officials and will coordinate with them on any required health and safety-related measures.”
From the article: According to information on the CDC’s website, hepatitis A, “…is usually transmitted person-to-person through the fecal-oral route or consumption of contaminated food or water.” Draw your own conclusions.
Here is what the article actually says (emphasis added): "Mecklenburg County health officials spoke by phone with all 18 passengers FROM THE CHARLOTTE AREA who were aboard the Sept. 21 flight" Note: They only spoke with the 18 passengers FROM THE CHARLOTTE AREA, not the passengers from SFO or who were connecting to other places. The article is silent on whether all of the other pax were contacted (not to mention that the article says that the crew member was sick on multiple flights). FLYERTALK: PLEASE READ THE ARTICLE CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU SUMMARIZE IT.
only 18? and what happened in the airport before boarding? Was the crew member in a tunnel all the way to the flight, not exposed to anyone? what about after the flight?
18 PAX from SFO to CLT?