According to the Camden County Health Department in New Jersey, a server at the Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant in Voorhees, NJ, recently tested positive for the Hepatitis A virus. The health department has reportedly vaccinated the rest of the employees to protect them and keep the virus from spreading.
The restaurant issued a statement saying that the health department had immediately been contacted, the person was no longer at work, and that there was little to no risk to the public health from the person’s illness. A second confirmed case in Burlington County, NJ, involves a restaurant server who went to a Marlton, NJ, hospital with flu-like symptoms consistent with Hepatitis A infection. Lab results later confirmed that diagnosis. The individual has not returned to work. Camden County health officials have been working with health officials in Burlington County and the New Jersey Department of Health to investigate the illnesses. Hepatitis A is usually spread when a person ingests fecal matter, even in microscopic amounts, from contact with objects, food, or drinks contaminated by the feces or stool of an infected person. It is rarely fatal, but it is highly contagious. Anyone with questions about Hepatitis A may call the Camden County Health Department hotline at (800) 999-9045 for more information.
