Public Health

Officials with the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals have developed a plan to protect the public should an outbreak of Zika virus occur in the state. The multi-part plan is designed to reduce mosquito populations and mobilize against transmission of Zika virus if an outbreak does occur.

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, in collaboration with hundreds of local governments and community organizations, has released the Louisiana State Health Assessment and State Health Improvement Plan. The State Health Assessment presents an analysis of the health needs and priorities facing every region of the state, detailing the strengths and weaknesses of each community as well as the opportunities and challenges facing them.

Dr. Melinda Wharton, director of the Immunization Services Division of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) and the nation’s chief immunologist, will visit Louisiana in advance of National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW), April 16 – 23. Dr. Wharton will be in Louisiana April 14 and 15.

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals has been notified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that two Louisiana residents who recently traveled to the Caribbean and South America were found to have had the Zika virus. Both individuals no longer have symptoms, and the Zika virus was confirmed after the individuals had recovered and no longer had the virus in their bloodstream.

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) recently awarded an $800,000 loan to the Town of Jackson through the State’s Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund. This low-interest subsidized loan will help improve infrastructure for the water system.

The Department of Health and Hospitals’ Office of Public Health provides residents of flood-affected areas some basic guidelines for safe mold cleanup and removal.

Tests ordered by the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) and performed by a certified lab have confirmed that the water in Donaldsonville is safe to drink. As such, the do not drink the water advisory has been lifted.

This evening, Louisiana State Health Officer Jimmy Guidry, MD, notified the Peoples Water System of Donaldsonville, LA that it must immediately change how it treats it drinking water after a routine inspection discovered possible elevated levels of chlorine dioxide in the treatment system. The directive is to make the change from using chlorine dioxide immediately this evening, March 22, 2016.

Because of needed repairs to its heating and cooling system, the Caddo Parish Health Unit will be closed for the next two weeks, beginning Monday, March 21. The health unit is expected to reopen on Friday, April 1 following this maintenance work.