Wisconsin Department of Health Services began investigating the outbreak of Elizabethkingia in December and told hospitals and labs to be on the lookout for the infection in January, but waited to announce it to the public in March, according to an article on the Star Tribune website.
Eighteen deaths have been linked to Elizabethkingia in Wisconsin, and 59 cases have been confirmed in the state.
Gov. Scott Walker said that when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health officials could not find the source of the outbreak on their own, they went to the public.
The source of the outbreak remains unknown, but health officials say there is no indication it was spread by a healthcare facility.
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