BLUEFIELD, W.Va. (AP) — Mercer County health officials are working to reduce the county's high rate of hepatitis B cases.
The county health department plans to offer free hepatitis B vaccinations to people who are at the highest risk of contracting the disease.
Public health nurse Judy Bolton tells the Bluefield Daily Telegraph (http://bit.ly/ZWmkHY ) that the county's rate is higher than both the state and national rates.
Bolton says the latest available figures show Mercer County's rate is 36 cases per 100,000 people. The state rate is 3.6 cases and the national rate is 1.2.
Bolton says the figures are several years old but she doesn't believe the county's rate has changed much.
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Information from: Bluefield Daily Telegraph, http://www.bdtonline.com
