The Public Health announced in a news release on Thursday that there was a recent report of an employee diagnosed with an active Tuberculosis at Amazon Fulfillment Center in Oxnard. It has also been said that 180 people may have been potentially exposed.
Around 2,000 workers are expected to work at the 2.3 million square foot facility, which averages two million shipments per week.
Ventura County Public Health Department’s tuberculosis program’s staff have only known about the employee who acquired the illness on Monday.
According to Dr. Robert Levin of the VCPH, their standard approach is to spend a day or two in the office to teach everyone, provide any relevant details regarding specific issues, answer any necessary inquiries, and reassure them in general.
In most cases, only a small number of people are infected after the index case, or the first victim.
On Monday and Tuesday, the VCPH Tuberculosis Program worked closely with Amazon to educate staff members and provide them instructional materials. Testing will be offered at no cost to close contacts, particularly friends and family the following week.
The health department’s tuberculosis program stated that they “will continue monitoring this situation and work with the appropriate state and local agencies on surveillance, testing, and tracking of the disease,” the news release said.
“We’re committed to the safety and well-being of our employees and would like to thank Ventura County Public Health (VCPH) for their partnership as we work together to help share the facts about tuberculosis with our teams,” Amazon spokesman Richard Rocha said in a statement. “We’re thankful no other employees have reported a tuberculosis diagnosis or related symptoms, and appreciate the testing that VCPH is making available to our employees out of an abundance of caution.”
According to Mayo Clinic specialists, TB is mostly a lung-based infection caused by bacteria that are transmitted from one person to another through coughing and sneezing.
The Mayo Clinic also emphasized that antibiotics are still the primary treatment for Tuberculosis even though some types of organisms may not respond well to medical treatments.
People with TB illnesses frequently have latent bacteria in their systems, which limits transmission, as mentioned by VCPH.
However, about 10% of people who acquire the virus go on to have a persistent infection, which aids in the illness’ transmission.
Meanwhile, a young person in Riverside County was discovered to have another case of active tuberculosis on Thursday of last week. After a brief hospitalization, the unidentified Raymond Cree Middle School student was given approval for discharge and continued recovering at home.
Although it has been reported that several people may have contracted the virus, Ventura County Public Health reassured the public that the community is safe.
