Manitoba offers free vaccines for areas hit by hepatitis A outbreak

A needle and syringe used to administer vaccines in shown in Virgil, Ont., Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Tara Walton

WINNIPEG — Manitoba is opening up free vaccine eligibility following a hepatitis A outbreak in a remote area of the province that includes four First Nations.

Health officials say they’ve documented 215 cases of the hepatitis A virus during the latest outbreak that includes up until Dec. 11.

A large number of those cases are in the Island Lake Region in northeastern Manitoba, which includes Garden Hill, St. Theresa Point, Wasagamack and Red Sucker Lake First Nations.

The province is offering free vaccinations to all residents six and older, anyone who travels to or works in these communities and individuals who have household visitors from the area.

The vaccine is also being provided to people in other regions of the province who were exposed to or could have been to cases associated with the outbreak.

Hepatitis A is a contagious liver infection caused by a virus and spreads through contaminated water or food or through close contact with someone who’s infected.

The province says the overall risk of exposure for the general public is low.

The Canadian Press