CLEARWATER, Fla. — An Arby’s fast food worker in north Pinellas County tested positive for hepatitis A, according to the Florida Department of Health.
The restaurant is located off U.S. Highway 19 North -- not far from Florida State Road 586 -- in Clearwater, according to health officials.
Investigators said the employee might have exposed guests between April 5 and 20. The Department of Health said people who ate at the restaurant and didn’t have a hepatitis A vaccine should get vaccinated.
The vaccine could protect against the disease if people get it within two weeks after exposure.
The Department of Health- Pinellas will open a special hepatitis A vaccination clinic at its Clearwater location, 310 N. Myrtle Ave. It will be open until 7 p.m. on May 3 and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on May 4.
Those with questions about exposure to hepatitis A at Arby's can call
the health department at 727-824-6932.
The Department of Health-Pinellas continues to offer the hepatitis A vaccine at no cost and without an appointment at these clinic locations from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays:
- St. Petersburg: 205 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street North
- Pinellas Park: 6350 76th Avenue North
- Mid-County (Largo): 8751 Ulmerton Road
- Clearwater: 310 N. Myrtle Avenue
- Tarpon Springs: 301 S. Disston Avenue
Hepatitis A is a virus that spreads from contaminated food or water or through contact with an infected person. Symptoms may include fatigue, vomiting or nausea -- along with pain or loss of appetite. In extreme cases, the virus can cause a loss of liver function. If you have any symptoms, you should call your doctor.
Authorities are asking everyone to be on high alert and report any more cases to the Florida Department of Health.
Click here for a county-by-county breakdown of hepatitis A cases from Jan. 1, 2018 through April 27, 2019.
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