Importing TB

Vermont’s Watchdog.org tells us more about VT Health Dept. response to TB in the state, Posted by Ann Corcoran on July 9, 2016

This is a great website—Watchdog.org—I wonder how many other states have a Watchdog site like this which goes around the politically correct media spin and digs deeper into important stories effecting citizens in their states. Vermont state epidemiologist attempt to downplay seriousness of active TB in refugee population.

Here is more on TB following the revelations we reported from Breitbart two days ago here. Watchdog.org is reporting that the Vermont Health Department may not be diligently alerting and testing those who might have come in contact with the recent cases of ACTIVE TB.

Information not disclosed by the Health Department includes how many contact investigations are underway to identify the disease’s potential spread among the general public. Also not disclosed was how many people will need to undergo testing due to contact with the active TB patients.

In January 2015, state epidemiologist Patsy Kelso and Health Commissioner Harry Chen led a well-publicized TB control effort to isolate a single teacher at Charlotte Central School diagnosed with active TB disease. That effort, covered by VPR and WCAX, ultimately tested 500 students and co-workers exposed to the teacher, and identified 19 children and two adults to whom the tuberculosis had spread, according to Stateline.

Kelso, speaking Thursday on VPR’s Vermont Edition, offered a much different response regarding TB disease among refugees. “It’s not a concern of mine,” Kelso said.

During the interview, Kelso shared data that show refugee populations are exhibiting a considerably higher rate of TB disease compared to native born Vermonters. “Looking at 2003 to 2015, we’ve seen 77 cases of (active) TB in people in Vermont, and 26 of those were in U.S.-born people and 15 of them were in refugees,” she said. Kelso added that the other 36 cases involved immigrants living in Vermont.  [Of the 26 U.S.-born people, how many were living in the household of an infected immigrant?—ed]

While Kelso’s response may have been aimed at allaying public fears about the disease’s spread, the epidemiologist noted that up to 10 percent of latent TB cases advance to active TB disease. That means Vermont’s infectious disease teams can expect to diagnose many more active TB cases as a result of the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program.

For more click here.

I know I’ve said this before, but until Michael Patrick Leahy at Breitbart began his investigation of Tuberculosis in the refugee stream to American towns and cities, we had no idea it was this bad.  Repeatedly those involved in the resettlement industry have said, oh, only latent TB-infected people can get in and now we learn that is not true.  And, if 10% of those with latent TB become active, will they become active in your child’s school one day, or working next to you in a meatpacking plant or serving you food in a restaurant. Are they ticking TB time bombs just waiting to go off?

Go here for our very large archive on ‘refugee health’ (our posts on Leahy’s previous stories are there). 310 previous posts are listed in that category addressing the many health concerns refugees bring to America (for you to pay for!).

https://refugeeresettlementwatch.wordpress.com/2016/07/09/vermonts-watchdog-org-tells-us-more-about-vt-health-dept-response-to-tb-in-the-state/