Baked goods sold at the Meijer in Mount Pleasant could be contaminated with Hepatitis A, state officials warned on Thursday.

A bakery worker from the store at 1015 Pickard St. tested positive for Hepatitis A on Thursday. Anyone who ate items purchased from the bakery between Aug. 23 and Sept. 20 may have been exposed to the virus, according to a press release from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Affected baked goods will bear the Meijer Bakery label, including individual items such as single doughnuts and rolls from the self-serve case. Anyone who has any affected products in their home should discard them immediately. Freezing does not kill the hepatitis A virus.

Only products from the Mount Pleasant Meijer bakery are affected. There is no danger from bakeries at other Meijer locations or from other departments at the store.

The Health and Human Services Department says no illnesses have been identified from this exposure and the risk is low. However, health officials say anyone who ate baked goods from the Meijer should watch for symptoms of hepatitis A.

Symptoms include sudden onset of abdominal discomfort, dark urine, fever, diarrhea, and yellow skin and eyes. Time from exposure to onset of illness (incubation period) is typically 15 to 50 days.

Hepatitis A illnesses typically last several weeks to several months. Most people will recover with no lasting effects.

The Hepatitis A vaccine may provide protection against the disease if administered within two weeks of exposure. State health officials are urging anyone who ate baked goods from the Meijer to contact a physician to find out whether they qualify for the vaccine.

Meijer is offering the Hepatitis A vaccine for free at the Mount Pleasant store. It also will be available at other pharmacies around the city.

The Central Michigan District Health Department is working with Meijer to provide vaccines to any of their bakery employees and to ensure they are following recommend guidelines.

Anyone who already had Hepatitis A or received two doses of the vaccine don’t need to worry about getting vaccinated again.

The best protection for avoiding a Hepatitis A infection is traditional handwashing precautions and thoroughly cooking foods to their recommended temperatures.

Anyone who develops symptoms of hepatitis A infection should stay home and contact their health care provider.

Anyone with questions or looking for assistance in locating the Hepatitis A vaccine is asked to the call the Central Michigan District Health Department.

Hepatitis A has continued to spread in southeast Michigan with 319 confirmed cases between Aug. 1, 2016 and Sept. 15 — resulting in 14 deaths, state health officials announced Thursday.

The cases in Detroit and Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe and St. Clair counties represent a 16-fold increase over the same period in 2014-15.

Eighty-one cases were diagnosed last month alone, compared with six reported to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services in August 2016.

“The southeast Michigan hepatitis A outbreak remains a top priority for public health officials from both the investigation and prevention standpoints,” Dr. Eden Wells, chief medical executive for MDHHS, said in a press release Thursday.

“Hepatitis A is a vaccine-preventable disease and in addition to our investigation of current and new cases, our focus is strongly aimed at increasing vaccination in adults, where hepatitis A vaccination is commonly low.”

Health officials have doubled down on efforts to fight the outbreak through increased awareness. The highly contagious viral liver disease can sometimes cause liver failure and death, but is easily prevented by getting vaccinated.

The state agency said no common source of the outbreak, such as contaminated food or water, has been identified. Transmission appears to be person-to-person, mostly through illicit drug use, sexual activity and other close contact.

MDHHS sent a letter to 5,069 Medicaid-enrolled health care providers across southeast Michigan earlier this month with information about the outbreak and the need for people to get vaccinated.

They said many vaccination campaigns are in place across the region, with some focusing on high-risk populations at jails, substance use treatment centers and homeless centers.

DHHS also has been in discussions with the Michigan Department of Corrections about implementing a vaccination campaign in the Detroit Receiving Center and Detroit Detention Center, they said.
Local health departments also are partnering with community organizations to provide hepatitis A vaccine to at-risk individuals, officials said. More than half of those diagnosed have a history of substance abuse, and 15 percent are homeless or living in shelters, according to DHHS.

Individuals with hepatitis A are infectious for two weeks before symptoms appear. The symptoms include jaundice (yellowing of the skin), fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine and light-colored stools.

People most at risk are those living with someone who has hepatitis A, having sexual contact with someone who has hepatitis A, or sharing injection or non-injection illegal drugs with someone who has hepatitis A. The virus also can be transmitted through contaminated food or water.