I hate to say it, but in light of the attitude of elected officials in Minnesota, and news like this, maybe some of you should consider leaving the state. Just saying!
From Michael Patrick Leahy at Breitbart:
An outbreak of 17 cases of multi-drug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis (TB) has been reported in Ramsey County, the second most populous county in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, a spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Health confirmed to Breitbart News on Monday.
“The outbreak has primarily affected elderly residents in the Hmong community, with 10 cases linked to a senior center where the first case was detected in 2016. Four other Hmong residents were also infected. So far six of the 17 people have died, three as a direct result of tuberculosis [TB],” the Star Tribune reported on Monday adding:
Some of the first transmissions occurred among a group of seniors who regularly played cards at the senior center.
But one of the card players had been sick and infectious for five years before diagnosis. That has left public health officials playing catch up in an effort to find everyone who is at risk.
No kidding!
I ask this same question every time we have a story about refugees with communicable diseases: Are volunteers for resettlement agencies trained to spot diseases in order to keep themselves and their families safe?
See my ‘health issues‘ category with over 300 posts on refugees’ physical and mental health. Many of Leahy’s previous articles on TB can be found there.
By the way, I bet none of those glowing reports about the economic boon refugees bring to a city factor in the cost of TB treatment. I hear it is a huge ticket item in some cities’ health departments.