Starbucks Employee May Have Exposed Hundreds of Customers to Hepatits A

Hundreds of Starbucks customers in New Jersey are being told to get vaccinated against Hepatitis A after an employee was found to have worked while infected.

According to the Camden County Department of Health, officials were notified last Wednesday that a Starbucks employee in Clementon, NJ tested positive for hepatitis A earlier this month and may have exposed thousands of customers to the virus.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Department of Health urged people to get vaccinated “as soon as possible, but no later than 14 days after contact” if they had visited the Starbucks in question.

“The county health department has been working closely with the patient and the staff at the Starbucks to address the situation,” Camden County Health Officer Paschal Nwako said. “Our highest priority is ensuring everyone involved remains safe and healthy. The patient is not currently working, and close contacts have been identified. We encourage anyone who may believe they were exposed to get vaccinated against hepatitis A by calling the county health department or your primary care physician.”

CNN reports health officials have already distributed 800 vaccines against hepatitis A, 17 of which were provided to Starbucks employees.

“Starbucks says that the location is busy, as most are. They’re saying they have an average of 600 patrons a day and some are return patrons maybe going multiple times a day,” county spokesperson Dan Keashen told CNN. “But the exposure is probably in the thousands.”