Kentucky elementary school cafeteria worker diagnosed with hepatitis A

COVINGTON, Ky. — A cafeteria worker at a Northern Kentucky elementary school was diagnosed with hepatitis A, according to our news partners WCPO-TV in Cincinnati.

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The Northern Kentucky Health Department issued a media release Tuesday, indicating the employee of John G. Carlisle Elementary School was likely working in the cafeteria while contagious.

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Students and family members who ate cafeteria food between Nov. 13 and Dec. 3 were urged to receive vaccinations. However, Kentucky schoolchildren are required by law to receive the vaccination prior to the start of the 2018 school year, WCPO-TV reports.

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Staff members at the school were notified of the diagnosis and were also encouraged to immediately get vaccinated against the virus, the station reports.

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Heath workers worked Tuesday night at the school sanitizing and throwing away food items the infected worker had touched.

An investigation found workers in the school had followed proper sanitation protocol prior to the diagnosis of the employee, WCPO-TV reports.

Health officials said the response at the school was an exercise in extreme caution rather than reacting to a severe threat.

“This is a really low risk to the folks that have been involved, minus the coworkers who definitely need to get the shots," Steve Devine, a representative for the Northern Kentucky Health Department said. "You don’t know where the exposure is going to come from tomorrow.”