--- title: A Hepatitis A Outbreak in San Diego Has Killed 16 People description: An outbreak of Hepatitis A in San Diego County has now taken 16 lives, local health officials said, with 421 total cases. canonical: https://time.com/4939902/hepatitis-a-outbreak-san-diego/ author: Sarah Begley article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-13T18:24:14.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T17:24:37.442Z article:section: Health og:title: 16 Dead in San Diego Hepatitis A Outbreak og:description: A total of 421 cases have been confirmed og:url: https://time.com/4939902/hepatitis-a-outbreak-san-diego/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4f7b16fce3ed0a42/6988dda486f68e78c96e6672/gettyimages-837481978.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: GettyImages-837481978 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 16 Dead in San Diego Hepatitis A Outbreak twitter:description: A total of 421 cases have been confirmed twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4f7b16fce3ed0a42/6988dda486f68e78c96e6672/gettyimages-837481978.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Hepatitis A Outbreak Has Killed 16 People in San Diego by [Sarah Begley](https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Sep 13, 2017 6:24 PM UTC  Hepatitis A virus (HAV). Image produced from an image taken with transmission electron microscopy. Hepatitis A virus (HAV). Image produced from an image taken with transmission electron microscopy.CAVALLINI JAMES / BSIP—CAVALLINI JAMES / BSIP by [Sarah Begley](https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Sep 13, 2017 6:24 PM UTC An outbreak of [Hepatitis A](http://time.com/4476283/frozen-strawberries-hepatitis-outbreak/) in San Diego County has now taken 16 lives, local health officials said, with 421 total cases and 292 hospitalizations. A local public health emergency was declared in the county on Sept. 1, [the Los Angeles _Times_](http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-hepatitis-outbreak-20170913-story.html) reports, and city and county officials have taken steps to counteract the spread of the virus. A [vaccination](http://time.com/3559121/hepatitis-c-vaccine-safety-trial/) campaign is underway, and since the virus is spread by contact, officials have urged diligent hand-washing. They have also sprayed down sidewalks in the city and opened tents with showers, bathrooms and hand-washing stations that can serve as temporary shelters so hundreds of homeless people can leave the sidewalks where infections have been spread, the _Times_ reports. Symptoms of [Hepatitis A](http://fortune.com/2017/06/07/tuna-steaks-hepatitis-texas-oklahoma-california/) (which not everyone who is infected will experience) include fever, jaundice, fatigue, nausea and digestive issues. Although most people recover on their own or with light treatment, it can be fatal for those with preexisting conditions and liver damage. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4939902/hepatitis-a-outbreak-san-diego/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4939902/hepatitis-a-outbreak-san-diego/"},"headline":"A Hepatitis A Outbreak Has Killed 16 People in San Diego","datePublished":"2017-09-13T18:24:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T17:24:37.442Z","description":"A total of 421 cases have been confirmed","url":"https://time.com/4939902/hepatitis-a-outbreak-san-diego/","keywords":["Infectious Disease","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4f7b16fce3ed0a42/6988dda486f68e78c96e6672/gettyimages-837481978.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4f7b16fce3ed0a42/6988dda486f68e78c96e6672/gettyimages-837481978.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"GettyImages-837481978","caption":"Hepatitis A virus (HAV). 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