Fast Facts
Illnesses: 103 illnesses* have been reported as of April 6, 2022
States affected: CA, CO, FL, HI, IL, MA, MN, NJ, NV, NY, OR, TX and WA
Recall: No
Investigation Status: Active
*This number is an estimate based on the information we have at this time. CDC is working with state and local partners to determine a more accurate number of illnesses in this outbreak and will update this number as more information is gathered.
CDC is working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) state, and local officials, and with Canadian public health authorities to investigate a multistate norovirus outbreak linked to raw oysters from British Columbia, Canada.
As of April 6, 2022, at least 103 norovirus illnesses have been reported from 13 states: CDC is working with state and local partners to determine a more accurate number of illnesses in this outbreak and will update this number as more information is gathered. FDA Advises Restaurants and Retailers Not to Serve or Sell Potentially Contaminated Raw Oysters from Canada (April 2022)external icon
Norovirus is the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States. However, state, local, and territorial health departments are not required to report individual cases of norovirus illness to a national surveillance system. That’s why we may not know about many cases, especially if people do not go to a doctor’s office or hospital. Each year, there are about 2,500 reported norovirus outbreaks in the United States. Norovirus outbreaks occur throughout the year but are most common from November to April.
State and local public health officials are interviewing people about the foods they ate a day to four days before they got sick. In interviews, many of the sick people reported eating raw oysters.
State and local officials have collected information about the source of oysters from restaurants where sick people ate. FDA has confirmed that potentially contaminated raw oysters were harvested in the south and central parts of Baynes Sound, British Columbia, Canada. The FDA and the states are conducting a trace forward investigation to determine where the raw oysters were distributed and to ensure they’re removed from the food supply.
This investigation is ongoing. CDC will update the public as more information is gathered.
