Did the Lehigh Valley overreact to a hepatitis A threat by
offering mass immunizations to thousands of people, or was the
public health effort justified to prevent further spread? The
answer depends upon whom you talk to. In the aftermath of three
mass-immunizations against hepatitis A in two weeks, some
members of the medical community, including infectious disease
specialist Dr. John Samies of Allentown, questioned the need for
the extraordinary measure and the precedent it set. But public
health officials claim the action was not only appropriate, it
also was a cost-effective means of controlling the spread of the
viral illness. Dr. Samies said about 1,000 food handlers acquire
hepatitis A in the United States each year, yet mass
immunizations are usually reserved for cases in which food
handlers are known to have bad hygiene and patrons are known to
have eaten there more than once. "One exposure to a person with
resonable hygiene is low risk," Samies said. "People who did
acquire hepatitis here probably d