The fatality count in the deadliest foodborne illness outbreak in U.S. history has been raised by the CDC. The Denver Post reports:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday it has updated the death toll from Colorado’s cantaloupe listeria to 32, but the two added most recently occurred “well before” Dec. 8.
Since that date, there have been at least four deaths of patients linked to the same listeria strain, but whose actual cause of death may take months to determine. One of those cases was Mike Hauser, a retired Monument podiatrist with multiple complications who died Tuesday.
The CDC issued a “Final Update” on December 8, 2011. Food safety attorney Bill Marler identified three others who were among those who had passed since the last update, two of whom are represented by Marler Clark. The two Marler Clark clients are Paul Schwarz, 92, of Kansas City, Mo.; Sharon Jones, 62, of Castle Rock, Colo.