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On January 11, 2005, the Washington State Board of
Health filed an amendment to Washington Administrative Code (WAC)
246-101 that made changes in requirements for the reporting of
notifiable conditions. These changes will be effective February 15,
2005, and will affect all reporters of notifiable conditions and
recipients of reports, including healthcare providers and facilities,
clinical laboratories, local health jurisdictions, the Department of
Health and others. This notice is to make you aware of these changes and
clarify the details.
The following provisionally notifiable conditions have
been adopted as permanently notifiable:
- Birth Defects – Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Birth Defects – Cerebral Palsy
- Birth Defects – Alcohol Related Birth Defects
- Birth Defects – Abdominal Wall Defects
- Chronic Hepatitis B
(initial diagnosis and previously
unreported prevalent cases)
- Acute Hepatitis C
- Chronic Hepatitis C
(initial diagnosis and previously
unreported prevalent cases)
- Herpes simplex
(neonatal and initial genital infection only)
The following condition, made notifiable August 3, 2004
by an emergency order of the State Health Officer, has been adopted as
permanently notifiable, and replaces Encephalitis, viral which
has been removed from the list of notifiable conditions:
- Arboviral
(mosquito-, sandfly- or tick-borne) Disease
The following provisionally notifiable condition has
been dropped from the list of notifiable conditions:
- Streptococcus, Group A, Invasive
A. Changes in notifiable condition reporting for health
care providers and health care facilities:
Health care providers and facilities are required to:
1. Notify the local health jurisdiction of the patient’s
residence or the local health jurisdiction where the provider or
facility is located within three days of confirmed or suspected
cases of Arboviral Disease (includes, but is not limited
to: Eastern equine encephalitis, Western equine encephalitis,
St. Louis encephalitis, dengue, West Nile virus disease,
California encephalitis, Powassan encephalitis, Japanese
encephalitis, Colorado tick fever, etc.).
2. Notify the local health jurisdiction of the patient’s
residence or the local health jurisdiction where the provider or
facility is located within one month of confirmed or suspected
cases of Acute Hepatitis C and Chronic Hepatitis B and
C (initial diagnosis and previously unreported prevalent
cases).
3. Notify Department of Health Maternal and Child Health
Assessment of Birth Defects – Autism Spectrum Disorder,
Cerebral Palsy, and Alcohol Related Birth Defects within a month of diagnosis.
In addition:
4. Health care providers are required to notify the local health jurisdiction of the patient’s
residence or the local health jurisdiction where the provider is located within three days of confirmed or suspected
cases of Herpes simplex (neonatal and initial genital
infection only)
5. Health care facilities are required to notify
Department of Health Maternal and Child Health Assessment of
Birth Defects – Abdominal Wall Defects (inclusive of
gastroschisis and omphalocele) within a month of diagnosis.
Encephalitis, viral and Streptococcus, Group A,
Invasive are no longer designated as notifiable conditions, and are
not required to be reported by providers or facilities.
B. Changes in notifiable condition reporting for
laboratories and laboratory directors
Laboratories and laboratory directors are required to:
1. Notify the local health jurisdiction of the patient’s
residence or the local health jurisdiction where the laboratory
is located within two days of laboratory results consistent with
Arboviral Disease (includes, but is not limited to:
Eastern equine encephalitis, Western equine encephalitis, St.
Louis encephalitis, dengue, West Nile virus disease, California
encephalitis, Powassan encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis,
Colorado tick fever, etc.) including viral isolation, detection
of viral nucleic acid or antibody.
2. Notify the local health jurisdiction of the patient’s
residence or the local health jurisdiction where the laboratory
is located within one month of laboratory results consistent
with Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B including
detection of viral nucleic acid, antigen or antibody.
C. Changes in notifiable condition reporting for local
health jurisdictions
In addition to being prepared to receive reports of
and investigate: Chronic Hepatitis B (initial diagnosis and
previously unreported prevalent cases) Acute Hepatitis C Chronic
Hepatitis C (initial diagnosis and previously unreported
prevalent cases) and Herpes simplex (neonatal and initial
genital infection only), local health jurisdictions are required to:
1. Submit a written, telephonic or electronic report to the
Department of Health Communicable Disease Epidemiology Section
for confirmed or suspected cases of Arboviral Disease
(includes, but is not limited to: Eastern equine encephalitis,
Western equine encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis, dengue,
West Nile virus disease, California encephalitis, Powassan
encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, Colorado tick fever, etc.)
and Acute Hepatitis C within seven days of completion of
the disease investigation.
2. Submit a written, telephonic or electronic report to the
Department of Health Infectious Disease and Reproductive Health
Assessment Unit for confirmed or suspected cases of Chronic
Hepatitis B and C (initial diagnosis and previously
unreported prevalent cases) and Herpes simplex (neonatal
and initial genital infection only) within seven days of
completion of the disease investigation.
3. Encephalitis, viral is no longer a notifiable condition
4. Streptococcus, Group A, Invasive is no longer a
notifiable condition
Program Contact Information for reporting and additional
information:
To report Arboviral Disease or Acute Hepatitis
C, or for questions about Streptococcus, Group A, Invasive or
Encephalitis, viral contact:
Communicable Disease Epidemiology Section
Division of Health Statistics, Epidemiology and Public
Health Laboratories
Washington State Department of Health
1610 NE 150th Street
Shoreline, WA 98155 Phone: 206-418-5500 Fax:
206-418-5515
To report Chronic Hepatitis B or C,
or for questions regarding these conditions, contact:
Jae Taylor
Infectious Disease and Reproductive Health Assessment
Unit
Division of Community and Family Health
Washington State Department of Health
P.O. Box 47838
Olympia, WA 98504 Phone: 360-236-3416 Fax: 360-586-5440
To report Herpes Simplex, or for questions
regarding this conditions, contact:
Anna Easton
Sexually Transmitted Disease Program
Division of Community and Family Health
Washington State Department of Health
P.O. Box 47838
Olympia, WA 98504 Phone: 360-236-3441 Fax: 360-236-3470
To report Birth Defects – Autism Spectrum Disorder,
Cerebral Palsy, Alcohol Related Birth Defects, or Abdominal Wall
Defects or for questions regarding these conditions, contact:
Jeanette Robbins
Information Technology Application Specialist
Maternal and Child Health Assessment
Division of Community and Family Health
Washington State Department of Health
NewMarket Industrial Campus, Bldg 10
PO Box 47835
Olympia, WA 98504-7835 Phone: 360-236-3492 Fax:
360-236-2323
For additional information about notifiable conditions
in Washington see:
http://www.doh.wa.gov/notify/list.htm
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