Letter to Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Duckworth Calls on Cdc to Protect Infant Lives by Tracking Cronobacter Infections

Letter

Dear Director Walensky:

I write to request that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) swiftly work with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) and relevant State and local public health officials to add Cronobacter infection in an infant to the list of national notifiable conditions tracked through the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS).

The recent deadly outbreak of Cronobacter infections in infants is a tragic reminder of the dire threat posed by such a condition and should motivate Federal, State and local public health agencies to take decisive action to enhance surveillance and reporting of Cronobacter infections in infants. Our Nation's inadequate reporting system results in critical data gaps that undermine our ability to understand the true scope of Cronobacter infections in infants. As CDC notes:

"About two to four cases are reported to CDC every year, but this figure may not reflect the true number of illnesses. That's because most hospitals and laboratories are not required to report Cronobacter infections to health departments."

Only one State appears to require doctors and laboratories to report Cronobacter infection cases to public health authorities. This is unacceptable. I strongly urge CDC work with CSTE and State and local public health officials to add Cronobacter infant infection to the NNDSS; and educate public health officials, pediatricians and hospitals on best practices to effectively identify and report Cronobacter infections in infants.

Thank you in advance for your consideration of my urgent request that CDC establish a national reporting and surveillance system for Cronobacter infections in infants.

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