{"id":2935,"date":"2018-12-04T15:43:56","date_gmt":"2018-12-04T20:43:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.greatflorida.com\/blog\/?p=2935"},"modified":"2026-04-16T18:34:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T22:34:23","slug":"hepatitis-a-health-advisory-issued","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/2018\/hepatitis-a-health-advisory-issued\/","title":{"rendered":"Hepatitis A Health Advisory Issued"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe Florida Department of Health<\/a> recently issued a health advisory to inform the public of an increase in Hepatitis A cases across Florida,\u201d says Dustyn Shroff<\/a>, Vice President of GreatFlorida Insurance<\/a>, Florida\u2019s largest independent health insurance agency.<\/a><\/p>\n

Since January 2018, 385 cases of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection have been reported in Florida. This is more than three times the previous five-year average of 126 cases. Florida\u2019s cases are beginning to mirror national trends.<\/p>\n

The increase in hepatitis A cases to date is predominantly in the Tampa Bay and Orlando metropolitan areas. Unlike previous outbreaks, most of the latest cases do not involve international travel exposures.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Although infections have occurred across all demographic groups, approximately 68 percent of the recent cases are among males. The median age of cases is 37 years and the highest rates of disease are among persons 30-49 years.<\/p>\n

The Mayo Clinic<\/a> explains, \u201cHepatitis A is a highly contagious liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus. The virus in one of several types of hepatitis viruses that cause inflammation and affect your liver\u2019s ability to function.\u201d<\/p>\n

HAV is usually transmitted through person-to-person contact. The virus can also be transmitted from contaminated food, water or an object that\u2019s infected. While mild cases do not require hospitalization, 77 percent of recent cases in Florida have required hospitalization. However, most people who are infected recover completely with no permanent liver damage.<\/p>\n

Hepatitis A is a vaccine-preventable illness. Most health insurance<\/a> companies cover the cost of a hepatitis A immunization. Check with your doctor, pharmacy or walk-in-clinic.<\/p>\n

\u201cHepatitis A vaccines are provided free to all Florida children 18 and under,\u201d reminds Dustyn Shroff<\/a>, Vice President of GreatFlorida Insurance<\/a>, Florida\u2019s top independent health insurance<\/a> agency.<\/p>\n

The Florida Department of Health<\/a> says the best way to prevent the virus is through vaccination. Additionally, practicing good hygiene- including thoroughly washing hands after the bathroom, changing diapers and before eating and preparing food can prevent the spread of hepatitis A.<\/p>\n

Symptoms of HAV include:<\/strong><\/p>\n

sudden nausea and vomiting<\/p>\n

abdominal pain or discomfort<\/p>\n

clay colored bowel movements<\/p>\n

dark urine<\/p>\n

loss of appetite<\/p>\n

low grade fever<\/p>\n

joint pain<\/p>\n

jaundice<\/p>\n

intense itching<\/p>\n

Get your health insurance<\/a> through a dependable company you know you can trust. GreatFlorida Insurance<\/a> offers health insurance coverage through Florida Blue<\/a>. Contact us today.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe Florida Department of Health recently issued a health advisory to inform the public of an increase in Hepatitis A cases across Florida,\u201d says Dustyn Shroff, Vice President of GreatFlorida Insurance, Florida\u2019s largest independent health insurance agency. Since January 2018, 385 cases of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection have been reported in Florida. This is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1219,"featured_media":2941,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13,1,7,8,82,89,9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2935","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare-insurance","8":"category-floridainsurance","9":"category-motorcycle-insurance","10":"category-renters-insurance","11":"category-rv-insurance","12":"category-travel-insurance","13":"category-umbrella-insurance"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2935","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1219"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2935"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2935\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13781,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2935\/revisions\/13781"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatflorida.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}