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Anthrax Q & A: Reporting

If tests confirm that I was potentially exposed to Bacillus anthracis or have anthrax, how will it be reported to the proper authorities?
Your doctor should IMMEDIATELY report any suspected isolate of Bacillus anthracis or any suspected case of anthrax to your local or state public health department. The state public health department is available to your doctor for consultation 24 hours a day. If local or state health department officials suspect that cases of illness may be due to a bioterrorist incident, they will notify CDC and an investigation will be conducted. If the investigation confirms that a bioterrorist incident has occurred or is thought probable, the FBI will be notified. Public health officials will also involve other response partners using a preestablished notification list. The CDC bioterrorism Web site displays the protocol that health officials will use for further reporting:
emergency.cdc.gov/emcontact/protocols.asp.

How should healthcare workers respond to suspected exposure to a bioterrorist agent? Who should healthcare workers call first, second, third? CDC, FBI, local police, local health department?
Healthcare providers, clinical laboratory personnel, and infection control professionals who notice illness patterns and diagnostic clues that might indicate an unusual infectious disease outbreak associated with intentional release of a biologic agent should report any clusters or findings to their local or state health department. (Guidelines for recognizing a number of biologic agents, including anthrax, plague, botulism, smallpox, inhalation tularemia, and hemorrhagic fever, are described in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 50, No. 41, dated October 19, 2001.)

  • Page last updated November 20, 2002
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