On a winter stretch of January, a worker behind the meat counter of a Philadelphia ShopRite carried a virus that spreads quietly, sometimes before any sign of illness appears. The city's health department, measuring a risk it judges very low, has asked those who handled the store's beef or pork in that window to seek a vaccine, a small and deliberate act of care set against an uncertainty that officials cannot yet fully measure. Sixty-one people had answered that call by Monday, and the question now is whether the quiet of the days since will hold.
Philadelphia Health Officials Warn of Possible Hepatitis A Exposure at Northeast ShopRite
Several people may have been exposed to hepatitis A, and 61 had received free vaccinations as of the reporting date.
Officials call the risk very low, but still urge vaccination
Mark
Why does a single worker at a meat counter trigger a public warning?
Mimi
Because the virus can be passed on before anyone feels sick, up to two weeks earlier according to the CDC. The worker was at the counter from Jan. 4 to Jan. 21, so the window is long.
Mark
Yet officials call the risk very low. Isn't that a contradiction?
Mimi
Not really. They're saying any one shopper's chance is small, but they still want people who handled or ate raw or undercooked beef or pork from that counter to get vaccinated.
Luke
Worth noting that "very low" is the department's own characterization. The reporting doesn't give a number behind it.
Mark
What about people who froze their meat?
Mimi
They're told to discard it as a precaution, according to the health department.
Luke
And how many people were actually exposed? We don't know. The spokesperson said that's unclear, given meat taken home and possible cross-contamination in the store.
Mark
What do we know about the worker?
Mimi
Very little. No details are available, and officials assume the person was unvaccinated.
Luke
Assume is the key word. That's an assumption, not a confirmed fact.
Mark
Is there any sign it has spread?
Mimi
Not so far. No additional hepatitis A reports and no other ShopRite locations affected, and 61 people were vaccinated as of Monday morning.
El Pulso
- A ShopRite meat counter worker in Philadelphia's northeast tested positive for acute hepatitis A while still serving customers.
- The possible exposure window runs from Jan. 4 to Jan. 21, leaving shoppers and handlers wondering whether they were touched by the virus.
- The health department is offering free hepatitis A vaccinations and urging anyone who handled raw or undercooked store meat to get one quickly.
- Sixty-one people had been vaccinated by Monday, while officials track possible spread through meat taken home and cross-contamination in the store.
- So far no new cases and no other locations have surfaced, and the vaccination window is closing as officials watch for signs of infection.
On a winter stretch of January, a worker behind the meat counter of a Philadelphia ShopRite carried a virus that spreads quietly, sometimes before any sign of illness appears. The city's health department, measuring a risk it judges very low, has asked those who handled the store's beef or pork in that window to seek a vaccine, a small and deliberate act of care set against an uncertainty that officials cannot yet fully measure. Sixty-one people had answered that call by Monday, and the question now is whether the quiet of the days since will hold.
By Monday morning, 61 people had rolled up a sleeve at a Philadelphia health department clinic for a hepatitis A shot, all offered free since Saturday. They were responding to a warning that a worker at a ShopRite in the city's northeast had tested positive for the virus while serving behind the meat counter.
The health department said the employee was on the job between Jan. 4 and Jan. 21, a period in which the person may have been contagious. The store is cooperating with officials. The risk of infection is considered very low, but people who bought meat from that counter during those weeks were given clear guidance: throw away frozen store meat as a precaution, and get vaccinated if you handled or ate raw or undercooked beef or pork from the counter. Anyone who has already had two doses of the vaccine or previously had hepatitis A does not need another.
Much remains unknown. No details about the worker are being released, and the number of people possibly exposed is unclear, in part because meat taken home could have spread the virus further. The worker is assumed to have been unvaccinated. So far, there are no additional cases and no other ShopRite locations involved.
Hepatitis A is a highly contagious liver infection that spreads through close contact or contaminated food and drink, and it can be passed on before symptoms appear. Most people recover fully, though rare cases can be serious, especially for those with existing liver disease. Vaccination is the main protection, and for people already exposed, a single dose within two weeks can help prevent illness. With the last possible exposure date at Jan. 21, officials are racing that clock while watching for any sign of new infections.
By Monday morning, 61 people had rolled up a sleeve at a Philadelphia health department clinic for a hepatitis A shot, all of them offered the vaccine free since Saturday. They were responding to a warning that a worker at a ShopRite in the city's northeast had tested positive for the virus while serving behind the meat counter.
The Philadelphia Department of Public Health said the employee was confirmed to have acute hepatitis A. The worker was on the job at the meat counter between Jan. 4 and Jan. 21, a stretch during which, officials said, the person may have been contagious. In a statement, the agency said the store knows about the situation and is working collaboratively with the Health Department.
Officials described the chance of infection as very low, but they gave specific instructions. Anyone who bought beef or pork from the store's meat counter in that window and froze it should throw it out as a precaution. Anyone who handled or ate raw or undercooked beef or pork from the counter during those dates should get vaccinated against hepatitis A as soon as possible. People who have had two doses of the vaccine, or who have had hepatitis A before, do not need another.
Much remains unknown. A department spokesperson told ABC News that no details about the infected worker are available. It is also unclear how many people may have been exposed, partly because of possible secondary exposures, meaning meat carried home and handled there, and partly because of potential cross-contamination inside the store. The spokesperson said the employee is assumed to have been unvaccinated.
So far, the department reports no additional cases of hepatitis A, and no other ShopRite locations have been affected.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes hepatitis A as a highly contagious liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus. The virus is found in the stool and blood of infected people. It spreads through close personal contact with an infected person or through contaminated food and drink, even in microscopic amounts. A person can pass it on without any symptoms, and can do so up to two weeks before symptoms appear. Those symptoms include yellowing of the skin or eyes, loss of appetite, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and diarrhea.
There is no specific treatment. Doctors typically recommend rest, good nutrition and fluids, and most people recover completely. In rare cases the infection can lead to liver failure and death, which is more likely among people with underlying conditions such as chronic liver disease.
The CDC recommends vaccination for protection. One version is given as two shots six months apart; another combines protection against hepatitis A and B, given as three shots over six months. For someone already exposed, experts say a single dose within two weeks may keep the virus from taking hold. That timeline matters here: the last date of possible exposure at the store was Jan. 21, and the health department's vaccination effort is under way as officials watch for any new cases.
Citas Notables
The store is aware of the situation and is working collaboratively with the Health Department.— Philadelphia Department of Public Health statement
People who have previously received two doses of Hepatitis A vaccine OR have had Hepatitis A in the past do not need to be vaccinated.— Philadelphia Department of Public Health
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