(NEW YORK) — Authorities in Suffolk County, New York, on Tuesday released video evidence from the unsolved Gilgo Beach murders, showing the last known surveillance of Megan Waterman, one of the victims.
Suffolk County Police also announced it is doubling the Crime Stoppers reward to $50,000 for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case.
Waterman, whose remains were found along Ocean Parkway, near Gilgo Beach in 2010, was last seen at Holiday Inn Express in Hauppauge, New York, in June 2010. She had advertised escort services on Craigslist.
The remains of 10 people were found in 2010 and 2011 in the weedy sections off Ocean Parkway near Jones Beach. At the time, police said half of the identified victims worked as prostitutes.
Earlier this year, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney K. Harrison created the Gilgo Beach Homicide Investigation Task Force. The task force includes representatives from the FBI, New York State Police, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office.
In 2020, police released photos of a belt believed to be handled by the suspect, which did not belong to any of the victims, hoping to advance the investigation.
Authorities discovered the remains during the search for Shannan Gilbert, a sex worker from New Jersey, but she is not believed to be tied to the other deaths because she did not match the pattern of the Gilgo Beach homicides, police said in 2020.
Remains found on Dec. 11, 2010 during the search for Gilbert, were later identified as the remains of 24-year-old Melissa Barthelemy. Two days later, three more victims were found on Ocean Parkway. They were later identified as Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25; Amber Lynn Costello, 27; and Megan Waterman, 22.
All four women worked as Craigslist escorts.
The remains of another woman who worked as an escort were found on March 29, 2011, but the remains have not been identified.
On April 4, 2011, three more sets of remains were found on Ocean Parkway, which were those of a toddler, an unidentified Asian male and a third victim who was later identified as Valerie Mack.
Two more sets of remains were found a week later, one of which was discovered to be the mother of the toddler. The mother’s partial remains were first found in 1997.
(WASHINGTON) — The White House says extending the federal mask mandate for airlines and other forms of transportation is still possible despite urging from GOP lawmakers and transportation industry leaders to end the measure, which is set to expire next week.
The decision could be influenced by an increase in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and a large increase in travelers. The TSA screened 2.6 million travelers on March 20 — a record since the pandemic began and an upward trend many experts expect to continue as summer approaches.
White House COVID-19 response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said extending the public health order is “absolutely on the table” on NBC’s “Today Show” on Monday. Dr. Jha was asked whether rising case numbers could justify extending the order.
“This is a decision that the CDC Director Dr. Walensky is going to make,” Dr. Jha said. “I know the CDC is working on developing a scientific framework for how to answer that. We are going to see that framework come out I think in the next few days.”
CEOs of airlines including Alaska Air, American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue Airways and United sent a letter to President Joe Biden in late March asking him to roll back the mask mandate on airlines as well as the testing requirements for passengers. They pointed to the efficacy of vaccines and to the “burden” enforcing such measures puts on airline staff.
“Now is the time for the Administration to sunset federal transportation travel restrictions – including the international pre-departure testing requirement and the federal mask mandate – that are no longer aligned with the realities of the current epidemiological environment,” the letter said.
“Importantly, the effectiveness and availability of high-quality masks for those who wish to wear them gives passengers the ability to further protect themselves if they choose to do so,” industry leaders said in the letter. “It makes no sense that people are still required to wear masks on airplanes, yet are allowed to congregate in crowded restaurants, schools and at sporting events without masks, despite none of these venues having the protective air filtration system that aircraft do.”
GOP Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Roger Wicker R-Miss., as well as Reps. Sam Graves, R-Mo., and Garret Graves, R-La., also called on the White House to roll back the order in a letter last week.
“At a time when operators across all modes of our Nation’s transportation system are grappling with skyrocketing fuel prices and the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, the Administration’s policies should reflect nothing less than steadfast support for the transportation sector’s rapid recovery. To that end, we urge you to join us in supporting our Nation’s transportation operators, employees, and users by ending immediately the Federal transportation mask mandate, or allowing it to expire once and for all,” the letter from lawmakers said.
Airlines for America, a group representing major airlines, and other travel industry groups also sent a letter to Dr. Jha last week urging the administration to roll back the COVID mitigation measures.
“Simply put, the pre-departure testing requirement and the mask mandate no longer provide the public health benefits they once did,” the letter said. “Today, these measures are imposing significant costs on the traveling public, airline employees, and the American travel and tourism industries.”
(NEW YORK) — Opioid overdose deaths in adolescents rose far more rapidly than the general population between 2019 and 2021, according to a new study of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
The study found that deaths from opioid overdoses in teens ages 14 to 18 increased by 94% between 2019 and 2020 and by an additional 20% between 2020 and 2021.
One specific driver of these deaths was fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that the Drug Enforcement Administration says is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine.
The researchers, who hailed from multiple institutions, found that adolescent fentanyl-related overdose deaths leapt 350% over the study period. Overall, fentanyl was associated with 77% of adolescent overdose deaths in 2021.
Additionally, specific youth faced elevated risk. Opioid overdose deaths were higher in adolescents from American Indian and Alaska Native and Latinx communities.
The findings come amid the widespread — and rapid — proliferation of fentanyl across the country.
According to the DEA, the number of forensic drug reports testing positive for fentanyl has skyrocketed in recent years from under 20,000 in 2015 to 117,045 in 2020. A recent study from the National Institutes of Health found that the number of individual fentanyl pills seized by law enforcement increased nearly 50-fold from the first quarter of 2018 to the last quarter of 2021.
Even though the adolescent rates outpaced them, adults haven’t been spared from the rising ubiquity of fentanyl. Provisional data released by the CDC in March showed that overdose deaths across age groups had reached record highs, taking the lives of nearly 106,000 Americans within the prior year.
These deaths were in large part driven by fentanyl.
A separate CDC study showed that of the more than 100,000 people who died from drug overdoses between May 2020 and April 2021, nearly two-thirds were linked to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.
Overall, deaths linked to synthetic opioids have nearly doubled in Americans of any age over the past two years, the provisional data showed.
Advocates say that the record highs in overdose deaths highlight the importance of adopting new strategies to combat the opiate epidemic.
“Urgent action is needed to address America’s spiraling overdose crisis, including expanding access to opioid addiction treatment and investing in harm reduction,” the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit health care research organization, wrote in a February report, “but these lifesaving tools continue to be underutilized and resistance remains strong in many areas of the country.”
The authors of the study echoed those recommendations for youth specifically.
“Increasing adolescent overdose deaths, in the context of increasing availability of illicit fentanyls, highlight the need for accurate harm-reduction education for adolescents and greater access to naloxone and services for mental health and substance use behavior,” the authors wrote.
According to guidance by the U.S. Surgeon General, individual citizens also have an important role to play. The guidance recommends that individuals learn the signs of opioid overdose — including slowed breathing and pinpoint pupils — and get trained in the use of naloxone, a potent antidote for opioid overdoses.
“Knowing how to use naloxone and keeping it within reach can save a life,” the guidance reads.
Eli Cahan, MS, is a contributor to the ABC News medical unit. He is a fourth year medical student at NYU School of Medicine and will be starting his residency in pediatrics at UCSF in June.
(MENLO, Iowa) — President Joe Biden traveled to Iowa on Tuesday for his first time as president to announce new efforts to bring down gas prices as the administration faces an 8.5% jump in the consumer price index compared to a year ago, which it attributes mostly to what he called “Putin’s Price Hike.”
“Your family budget, your ability to fill up your tank, none of it should on hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide a half a world away,” Biden said, appearing to ad lib that Russia’s actions in Ukraine amount to “genocide” for the first time. The U.S. government has an internal process for designating whether genocide has occurred, and other Western nations haven’t made the determination.
Biden was asked directly last week if he thought the atrocities in Bucha were genocide, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed, but responded at that time, “No, I think it is a war crime.”
But on Tuesday, he said: “Yes, I called it genocide. Because it has become clearer and clearer that Putin is just trying to wipe out the idea of even being able to be a Ukrainian. And the evidence is mounting.”
The president also offered brief remarks on the subway shooting in New York City from Menlo, Iowa, before pivoting to his plan to ease gas prices amid intensifying inflation.
The March CPI report released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed inflation is at its highest point in the U.S. in more than 40 years as rising prices have an impact on consumers worldwide. Prices were up 1.2% compared to just a month ago, the report said, raising concerns that, if the Federal Reserve gets more aggressive in raising interest rates to temper inflation, that might trigger a recession.
“Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has driven up gas prices and food prices all over the world,” Biden said. “So everything is going up. We saw it in today’s inflation data. Seventy percent of the increase in prices in March came from Putin’s price hike in gasoline.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki tried to preemptively cushion the blow of the report numbers on Monday. She said the White House expected a large difference between core and headline inflation, pointing to the price of gas as the main reason for the discrepancy.
“Just as an example, since President Putin’s military buildup in January, average gas prices up more than 80 cents. Most of the increase occurred in March and gas prices, at times, prices were up more than a dollar above pre-invasion level. That roughly 25% increase in prices will drive tomorrow’s inflation rating,” Psaki said.
To address those prices, Biden announced Tuesday he issuing a temporary, emergency waiver for the summer to allow the sale of “E-15” — a blend of gas with 15% ethanol, rather than the usual 10%, which the White House says will bring down gas prices by 10 cents a gallon. Usually, E-15 is not sold in the summer because it’s believed to add to smog.
“The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to issue an emergency waiver to allow E15 gasoline that uses more ethanol from homegrown crops to be sold across the United States this summer in order to increase fuel supply,” Biden said. “It’s not going to solve all our problems. But it’s going to help some people and I’m committed to do whatever I can to help. Even if it’s an extra buck or two in the pockets.”
But the move will have a limited impact: Only 2% of gas stations around the country carry E-15, mostly in the Midwest. The White House countered a question from ABC News on whether the impact would be insignificant for Americans.
“Ultimately this is about giving Americans more options and more flexibility,” a White House official said ahead of the president’s remarks. “President Biden knows that every cent matters and families will see savings even after taking into consideration the difference in energy efficiency.”
Inflation and even gas prices have been on the rise even before the invasion of Ukraine. A new ABC News/Ipsos poll found Americans are more likely to place a “great deal” or a “good amount” of the blame for the price increases on Democratic Party policies (52%) and Biden (51%) than on Republican Party policies (33%) and former President Donald Trump (24%). A strong majority of Americans (68%) also disapproves of the way Biden is handling gas prices.
Biden’s trip to Iowa comes with the midterm elections seven months away. It’s a state he spent a lot of time in amid the 2020 campaign, but ultimately lost to former President Donald Trump by nine points.
While his remarks are set to focus on his administration’s actions to lower gas prices and the bipartisan infrastructure law passed last year, Biden might feel obligated to address Tuesday’s report, which showed increases in prices for gasoline, rent and food were the largest contributors to inflation for Americans. Gasoline prices rose 18.3% compared to a month ago and were a major contributor to inflation; other energy prices also increased. Food prices increased by 1% and the food at home prices by 1.5%.
Aside from food and energy, rent was the biggest factor in the price increases. Airline fares, household furnishings and operations, medical care and motor vehicle insurance also contributed to inflation. Used cars and trucks fell 3.8% compared to a month ago.
The report, though in line with expectations, does nothing to temper concerns that the Federal Reserve has a tough job ahead of it in cooling this inflation without sparking a recession.
ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky and Zunaira Zaki contributed to this report.
(HOUSTON) — A 23-second running gun battle in which 30 to 50 shots were fired during a teen’s birthday party at a rented Airbnb house in a suburb of Houston left one person wounded and police searching for suspects, authorities said.
Ring doorbell camera footage from a home near the party house was obtained by ABC station KTRK in Houston and captured the chaotic scene of multiple people running down a residential street and diving behind parked cars for cover as the gun violence unfolded.
“There were so many shots, I just can’t believe more weren’t wounded, killed, more damage,” a woman who lives near the Airbnb rental and witnessed the incident after arriving home with her daughter told KTRK. “You know it could have been so much worse.”
Investigator Robert Gonzales of the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office said the shooting happened Saturday night in Manville, about 24 miles south of Houston. He said one teenager was shot in the foot.
Gonzales said the shooting erupted when a fight broke at a 16th birthday party that was being held at the rented Airbnb house.
No arrests were reported as of Tuesday morning.
“We’re attempting to locate and get more information from the public,” Gonzales said.
Authorities said at least three guns were involved in the shooting, which left numerous cars in the neighborhood pocked with bullet holes and at least one window of a neighboring home shattered.
Airbnb said in a statement that it has removed the home from its website and suspended the person who rented it pending its own investigation.
“Airbnb bans parties, and we condemn this senseless gun violence,” the company said in its statement. “We have reached out to the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office and stand ready to support their investigation. We take party house issues seriously and support fair regulations that balance anti-party measures while empowering our local Host community to continue earning meaningful additional income.”
The Texas shooting happened on the same day as another shooting at an Airbnb rental house in the Sacramento, Calif., suburb of Elk Grove left an 18-year-old man dead, according to the Elk Grove Police Department. No arrests have been made.
A preliminary investigation found that the Airbnb rental was being used for a party at the time of the fatal shooting in Elk Grove, police said in a statement. Detectives suspect there were 10 to 15 people at the house party but most were gone when officers arrived and found the victim inside the house, according to the statement.
(NEW YORK) — A gunman donned a gas mask, detonated a smoke canister and opened fire on a New York City subway train Tuesday morning, shooting 10 people and sparking panic during the rush-hour commute.
Twenty-nine victims went to Brooklyn hospitals with various injuries. Five people were critically injured and have since stabilized, according to a fire department official.
Police described the gunman, who is still on the run, as an “active shooter.” The bloodshed comes amid a surge in crime on New York City’s transit system.
The shooting, reported just before 8:30 a.m. local time, erupted on a Manhattan-bound N subway car as it approached the 36th Street subway station in Sunset Park in Brooklyn, New York City Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said at a news conference.
According to a police official, the suspect was seen mumbling to himself before he put on the gas mask, released a smoke canister commonly bought online and opened fire with a .380 caliber handgun.
A credit card was also recovered from the scene and investigators said the card was used to rent a U-Haul, according to a police source. Police located the vehicle in Gravesend, Brooklyn, on Tuesday afternoon, roughly five miles southeast of the subway station and were investigating to determine if it has any connection to the suspect, the source said.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams told New York station WABC that police are working to get as much evidence and clues from the vehicle as they can.
“We want to make sure that all of the evidence that is gathered is going to assist us in apprehending this person. We must make sure that we have it protected correctly so that we can convict this person for,” he said.
There were no working cameras in the 36th Street station, according to a police official. The cameras, which are aimed at the turnstiles, didn’t transmit in real-time due to a glitch computer malfunction, a source said. The same glitch impacted cameras at the stops before and after 36th Street.
But police were able to get an image of the suspect from a bystander’s cellphone video, a law enforcement official told ABC News.
In the subway station, police found a handgun with three extended round magazines: one on the shooter’s backpack, one empty on the floor and one in the gun jammed, the law enforcement official said. The gun jamming is believed to have saved lives, the official said.
Yav Montano, 24, was on the train when he said the whole car filled with smoke.
“It was hard to breathe, it was hard to see. It was hard to hear or pay attention to what was going on with the chaos that was happening,” he said.
“I didn’t see anything because the smoke in the train was so thick. I couldn’t even see halfway down the length of the train car,” he added.
“After the smoke went on there was a bunch of popping, which I thought at first was firecrackers,” he went on. “I ducked behind a chair to protect myself.”
From a crouching position on the floor, Montano said, “I saw a lot of blood on the floor. Too much blood.”
Montano said the doors opened at 36th Street about three to four minutes later. “As soon as the doors opened, everyone started to pour out and run,” he recalled.
Multiple smoke devices and a bag of commercial-grade fireworks have been recovered, according to a law enforcement official.
Sewell said there are no known explosives on subways and a motive is still unknown.
After initially saying the shooting was not being investigated as an act of terrorism, Sewell later said police are “not ruling anything out.”
Sewell described the suspect as a man wearing a green construction-type vest and a gray-hooded sweatshirt. The suspect has a “heavy build” and is believed to be about 5 feet 5 inches tall, Sewell said.
A man who works in a bodega outside the subway told ABC New York station WABC about 10 to 15 people ran to his store for safety.
“It was horrifying,” he said.
“I saw three or four people with gunshot wounds to their legs. They just fell to floor before the cops came…They just stayed here for a couple of minutes before the coast was clear,” he said. “Everyone was terrified, I was terrified.”
Victims range in age from 17 to 50, according to a police official.
A senior federal law enforcement source told ABC News authorities are concerned this shooting showed a level of planning and commitment to kill scores of commuters during rush hour. The source said it is too early to know if the suspect acted alone.
President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Attorney General Merrick Garland and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas have been briefed on the situation, the White House said.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday afternoon that he’s “praying for those that are injured and all those touched by that trauma.”
“And we’re grateful for all the first responders … including civilians, who didn’t hesitate to help their fellow passengers,” Biden said.
“We’re gonna continue to stay in close contact with New York authorities as we learn more about the situation,” he said.
The FBI is assisting and officials from the ATF are at the scene. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was also at the scene for an afternoon news conference.
Anyone with information, video or photos is urged to call 800-577-TIPS.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Pierre Thomas, Mark Crudele, Miles Cohen and Luke Barr contributed to this report.
Evgen Kotenko/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — The Pentagon has been providing daily updates on the U.S. assessment of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Ukraine’s efforts to fight back.
Here are highlights of what a senior U.S. defense official told reporters Tuesday on Day 48:
Russia could use riot control agents to mask chemical weapons
A defense official said the U.S. cannot confirm whether Russia has used any chemical weapons in Mariupol or elsewhere in Ukraine, but the Defense Department has seen evidence Russia could consider disguising use of chemical weapons by making them look like more benign riot-control agents.
“In the past we’ve had indications that that could be one thing that the Russians look at, is the potential mixing of agents with the with the idea that they could disguise a more serious attack by using the vehicle and the techniques of riot control agents,” the official said.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby put out a similar statement Monday night addressing social media reports claiming Russia used a chemical weapon in Mariupol.
“These reports, if true, are deeply concerning and reflective of concerns that we have had about Russia’s potential to use a variety of riot control agents, including tear gas mixed with chemical agents, in Ukraine.”
Kirby, like the official on Tuesday, emphasized the U.S. cannot confirm the allegations.
On Tuesday, Kirby told reporters the U.S. is looking into the matter.
“We’re obviously taking it seriously and we’re monitoring it,” Kirby said. “We’re trying to do the best we can to figure out what, if anything, happened.”
Russian convoy creeping south
The Russian convoy approaching Izuim is still roughly 40 miles to the north of the key Ukrainian city, according to the official.
“We do assess that it’s moving, but not at breakneck speed,” the official said.
While the Pentagon doesn’t have a pristine view of what capabilities make up the convoy, it seems to be support-heavy.
“It includes some command and control elements, some enablers, and we think it’s also intended for resupply, perhaps an effort to amend their poor performance in logistics and sustainment in the north,” the official said.
Heavy fighting continues to the south of Izuim, with Russian forces about 12 miles from the city.
Mariupol stands
While Russian forces have devastated the coastal city of Mariupol with long-range strikes and have cut off essential supplies to the populace, Ukrainians continue to defend it.
“You’ve seen the devastation that Russian airstrikes have wrought on Mariupol in the city, but our assessment is that the Ukrainians are are still fighting for it,” Kirby said.
Mariupol is strategically important for both the Ukrainians and Russians.
“It’s obvious that the Russians want Mariupol because of its strategic location there at the south of that Donbas area and right on the Sea of Azov,” Kirby said. “It’s a major, important city… it would provide them unfettered and unhindered land access between the Donbas and Crimea.”
Meanwhile, Ukraine has its own clear incentives to keep Mariupol.
“It also has great significance to the Ukrainian people because of what it represents to their economic life, because it is their city and it’s part of their country,” Kirby said. “They haven’t given up on it, and we’re not giving up on them, either.”
Military aid for Ukraine
The $800 million military aid package for Ukraine authorized by President Joe Biden last month has mostly been delivered, and will be completed in the coming days, according to the official.
“Yesterday, two U.S. flights arrived in the region with everything from small-arms ammunition, machine guns, body armor, grenades and other explosives,” the official said.
So far, the U.S. has sent 19 out of an expected 20 flights needed to deliver the $800 million package.
While U.S. officials have said Russia has not hit support shipments coming over the border, there is an effort more broadly to disrupt Ukrainian forces’ ability to resupply themselves.
“They certainly have shown an interest in trying to hit logistics and sustainment for the Ukrainians, and they have certainly tried to go after Ukrainian air defense as well,” the official said.
(NEW YORK) — President Joe Biden addressed the New York City subway system shooting that left at least 29 injured on Tuesday while he was in Iowa as federal authorities in Washington assist New York officials in an intense manhunt for the suspect.
“To start, I’d like to say a few words about the mass shooting in New York City subway this morning, you all read and heard about,” Biden began, before delivering remarks on easing gas prices. “Jill and I and my wife Jill and I are praying for those who are injured and all those touched by that trauma, and we’re grateful for all the first responders who jumped into action, including civilians — civilians who didn’t hesitate to help their fellow passengers and try to shield them.”
“We’re going to continue to stay in close contact with New York authorities and as we learn more about the situation over the coming hours and days,” he said. “We’re not letting up on it until we find out, and we find the perpetrator,” he said.
Biden was briefed on the shooting earlier, White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted, before he departed for Iowa. Senior White House staff are also in contact with New York City Mayor Adams and Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell as the situation unfolds, she said, and Biden reiterated.
En route to Des Moines, Psaki told reporters on Air Force One that she spoke with Biden aboard the plane about the ongoing situation and said the president reiterated a commitment to provide assistance to local leaders on the ground as the investigation continues.
“Anything they need, anything they want. We are here to help them and provide that to them,” Psaki said.
She said Biden and New York City Mayor Eric Adams have not yet had a phone call Tuesday.
The still at-large suspect — who police said was wearing a green vest and a hooded gray sweatshirt — is believed to have opened fire inside at least one subway station during morning rush hour traffic. There are at least three active crime scenes in Brooklyn. Authorities said at an earlier press conference that the lone gunman put on a gas mask, deployed a smoke canister, and when the subway car filled with smoke, opened fire inside the car and on the platform.
Among those injured, according to the FDNY, 10 were shot. Five people are in critical but stable condition.
The NYPD has put out a citywide alert for a UHAUL vehicle and shared a description of the suspect with federal authorities. The shooter’s motive remains unclear, police said.
Vice President Kamala Harris has received regular updates on the shooting, according to a White House official. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas have also been briefed.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York tweeted that he is “closely monitoring” the unfolding situation in what he called “our beloved Brooklyn.”
“I’m grateful for the quick action of our first responders,” he said. “To everyone in New York: Stay safe.”
The shooting sparking panic across New York City comes as Adams has vowed to combat gun violence as mayor amid a recent surge in crime.
ABC News’ Aaron Katersky, Josh Margolin, Alexander Mallin and Emily Shapiro contributed to this report.
(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — Health officials are warning Florida residents about a “large” outbreak of a potentially fatal bacterial illness known as meningococcal disease that’s primarily affecting gay and bisexual men.
So far this year, there have been 21 confirmed cases of meningococcal disease as of Monday, according to Florida Department of Health data. That’s higher than the state’s five-year average of cases of the disease.
“[Florida Department of Health] epidemiologists are investigating each case as well as contacting people with potential or direct exposure to known cases to provide them with information and treatment options,” the department said in a statement.
Most of the cases are in central Florida, and more than half are in people between the ages of 20 and 39, according to state health department data.
The “large, ongoing” outbreak is primarily among men who have sex with men, including those living with HIV, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC recently issued an alert on the outbreak, urging gay and bisexual men and men who have sex with men who live in Florida or who plan to travel to the state to get vaccinated against the disease. The outbreak is primarily among residents, though it has affected some people who have traveled to Florida, the CDC said.
There also have been cases of meningococcal disease reported among Florida college students in recent months, though “there is no evidence to suggest that the cases among college students are related to the larger outbreak,” the CDC said.
Meningococcal disease is a rare but serious disease that is primarily spread by close or direct contact, such as kissing. Symptoms include fever, headache, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, light sensitivity, confusion and rash.
Meningococcal disease can commonly lead to two potentially fatal infections: meningitis — when the lining of the brain and spinal cord become infected — and bloodstream infection.
Those who contract the disease could suffer from hearing loss, brain damage, kidney damage, loss of limbs or nervous system problems.
“Getting vaccinated is the best way to protect against meningococcal disease,” the Florida Department of Health said.
Florida health officials are encouraging men who have sex with men, people living with HIV, immunocompromised individuals and college students to get vaccinated against the disease amid the outbreak. Anyone in those groups who more than five years ago received their MenACWY vaccine — one of two types of meningococcal vaccines available in the U.S. — is also encouraged to get vaccinated.
People planning to travel to Florida should get vaccinated at least two weeks before traveling, the CDC advised.
College students may choose to get a MenB vaccine, which is available for those between the ages of 16 and 23, to protect against meningococcal disease, the CDC said.
(NEW YORK) — Cases of several sexually transmitted diseases continued to increase during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new federal report.
Published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tuesday, the report found STD cases fell during the early months of 2020 but resurged later in the year.
Overall, 2.4 million STD cases were reported in the U.S. in 2020, a slight decrease from the 2.5 million cases reported in 2019.
However, the decreases observed in early 2020 may have been a result of significant reductions in screening and reporting associated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CDC noted.
“Many jurisdictions reported critical effects on staffing and testing and treatment supplies, straining an already crumbling public health infrastructure,” the agency wrote in the report, meaning “COVID-19 significantly affected STD surveillance and prevention efforts.”
Specifically, cases of gonorrhea, syphilis and congenital syphilis were higher than levels seen in 2019 despite lockdowns, stay-at-home orders and school closures.
Cases of chlamydia — which represent about two-thirds of total STD cases — were lower in 2020.
“There were moments in 2020 when it felt like the world was standing still, but STDs weren’t,” Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, said in a statement. “The unrelenting momentum of the STD epidemic continued even as STD prevention services were disrupted.”
In terms of specific diseases, the report found cases of gonorrhea were up 10% in 2020, from about 616,000 to more than 677,000. Additionally, cases of syphilis increased 7% from nearly 39,000 to more than 41,000.
Cases of congenital syphilis, which occurs when a mother passes on the disease to her baby during pregnancy, spiked 15% from about 1,900 in 2019 to more than 2,100. This occurred in the broader context of what the CDC has called a “resurgence” in congenital syphilis with annual case counts skyrocketing 235% since 2016.
The CDC said these increases are particularly “worrisome” because congenital syphilis — which is easily preventable with screening and treatment — has serious risks including life-long physical and mental health risks for babies, miscarriage and stillbirth.
Because congenital syphilis occurs in communities of color at rates several times higher than among whites, officials fear the rises in the disease spreading from mother to child will perpetuate health disparities.
“This … highlights the nation’s failure to provide sufficient, quality sexual health care for everyone who needs it,” Dr. Leandro Mena, director of CDC’s Division of STD Prevention, said during a media telebriefing Tuesday.
On its face, the one silver lining of the report found chlamydia cases decreased 13%, to about 1.6 million from 1.8 million.
However, the CDC cautioned that, because the disease is typically asymptomatic, these decreases were more likely due to screening shortfalls than to drops in infections.
During the telebriefing, the agency elaborated on some of the causes of the shortcomings in screening.
Mermin said “STD program resources were heavily diverted to address COVID-19” — including shunting of contact tracing staff. Half of programs discontinued STD prevention field work during most of 2020.
Additionally, Mena said more than half of the programs reported shortages in testing and treatment supplies during the pandemic.
The report also addressed which groups saw the highest rates of STDs.
Half of all STDs reported in the U.S. in 2020 were among 15-to-24-year-olds.
STD rates were also higher across the board among certain racial and ethnic groups – including Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and American Indian/Alaskan Native – compared to white and Asian Americans.
Gay and bisexual men were also disproportionately affected — particularly by syphilis — than other groups.
Rates in certain regions also soared far above the national average. For example, in Mississippi, rates of chlamydia were 167% higher than the national average, and rates of gonorrhea were 224% higher.
Similar patterns were seen in other states throughout the South, including Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama.
If the country fails to “rebuild, innovate, and expand” STD prevention resources in the coming years, Mermin said he expects STD rates will continue to rise.
“STDs are not patiently waiting for the pandemic to end, and neither can we,” the agency wrote in its report.
