Jojy Cheriyan MD,MPH-June 4, 2014

A new report from the Federal Government Agency CDC (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention), released yesterday placed the blame on restaurant and food service workers for the majority of Norovirus outbreaks. The report states that 70 percent of the outbreaks originated from contacts traced back to restaurant and food service workers. One in five workers admitted reporting for work despite suffering from severe gastrointestinal illness.

Data collected from the Health Departments across the U.S. show that 20 million people each year are sickened, and 800 die from the Norovirus, most often from eating contaminated food.

The name "Norovirus" is synonymous in the public mind as the "cruise ship virus" for causing mass outbreaks of food poisoning. However, cruise ships are responsible for only about 1 percent of all reported Norovirus outbreaks.

Report shows that more than 90% of contamination occurred during food preparation, and 75% of food involved in outbreaks was consumed raw.

The CDC Director Tom Frieden in a press teleconference  yesterday called on the food service industry to redouble efforts to ensure that food workers wash their hands frequently, handle food with utensils or use gloves when they touch your food.

Norovirus:

Norovirus is spread primarily via the fecal-oral route, including person-to-person contact as well as consumption of contaminated food. This virus  can survive freezing temperatures or heat up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit,  and is mainly unaffected by common disinfectants. Treating people with the virus costs an estimated $777 million per year – and it can be sometimes deadly. The virus multiply very fast and a very little amount of viral particle can sicken thousands of people.

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