The new multistate Listeria monocytogenes deli meat outbreak announced one week ago has sickened ten people in three states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), but several Massachusetts counties have been hard hit. That state alone has seven of the ten cases in three counties.
The Massachusetts counties hard hit include Essex County with four cases, Suffolk County with two cases, and one patient in Middlesex County, according to information from the Massachusetts Department of Health. The current outbreak cluster and the cluster of listeriosis cases from last year’s outbreak are not related.
The patient age range in Massachusetts is from 60 to 89 years, and five out of the seven cases are female. There is one “common chain” among Massachusetts residents.
In that deli meat listeriosis outbreak last year, ten people in five states, including one person in Massachusetts, were sickened. All ten people were hospitalized, and one person died.
You can contact food safety attorney Fred Pritzker for help by calling 1-888-377-8900 or 612-338-0202.
Noted food safety lawyer Fred Pritzker, who has represented many Listeria patients in lawsuits over the years, said, “It is terrible that people can become so sick and die just because they bought sliced meat from a deli. There is zero tolerance for this pathogen in ready-to-eat foods for good reason.”
There is a history of Listeria monocytogenes outbreaks linked to deli meats and cheeses. These types of foods are susceptible to contamination by this pathogen. Listeria monocytogenes bacteria grow at refrigerator temperatures, and freezing doesn’t destroy it. The bacteria can form biofilms that protect it against cleaning solutions. Once it is established in a facility, it can be difficult to eradicate and spreads easily.
Symptoms of listeriosis, the illness caused by this pathogen, can take up to 70 days to appear. This long incubation time frame is one reason why this investigations can be so difficult and why traceback is challenging. Symptoms typically include a high fever, stiff neck, severe headache, muscle aches, nausea, and diarrhea.
If you or anyone you know has been ill with these symptoms, especially after eating deli meats and/or cheeses, see your doctor. You may be part of this Listeria deli meat outbreak.
If you or a loved one have been sickened with a Listeria monocytogenes infection, especially after eating deli meat or cheese, please contact our experienced attorneys for help at 1-888-377-8900 or 612-338-0202.
