PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The restaurant at the center of a hepatitis A investigation in Montgomery County is pushing back on accusations that it was responsible.
While restaurant owners and staff send their thoughts and sympathy to everyone affected by the recent outbreak, attorney Francis Rechuitti, who represents Gino’s Ristorante & Pizzeria in West Norriton, has a lot of questions about how the county and state health departments handled the investigation — especially the closure of the restaurant.
For example, Rechuitti asks why restaurant staff weren’t tested for hepatitis A earlier in the investigation. He said every staff member who handled food at the restaurant tested negative, which he argues shows the restaurant is not involved in the outbreak.
And, he said, if those tests had been done in December, the forced closure would have been unnecessary.
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He also questions why the restaurant was forced to close in January if the Montgomery County Office of Public Health said the exposure was limited to late November.
The county health department quotes the owner of Gino’s as saying workers don’t wash fresh produce, but Recchutti said he was either misunderstood or misquoted. Recchutti said they do wash fresh produce but asked for clarification on how to handle pre-washed, bagged produce.
The Office of Public Health lifted the closure requirement Thursday, explaining that the hepatitis A exposure was in late November and the restaurant had discarded any food that could have been contaminated.
Three deaths are connected to the outbreak. In all, seven people were hospitalized. There are 10 confirmed cases, three of which are under investigation.
Hepatitis A is most commonly spread by someone who’s infected by improperly washing their hands. It can also be spread in raw fruits and vegetables and undercooked shellfish.