Podiatry and blood draw services may have been associated with Hep C outbreak.

HCR ManorCare has sued Trinity Health after analysis suggested an association between a large hepatitis C outbreak with podiatry and blood draw services that the skilled nursing company contracted for, according to local reports. 

A preliminary statistical analysis linked the services to the hepatitis C outbreak, the North Dakota Department of Health announced. Trinity Health previously provided ManorCare Health Services-Minot’s residents with these services through “contractual agreements,” KFYR-TV in Bismarck, ND, reported. Two residents filed a federal lawsuit against ManorCare in April. 

Trinity released a statement denying the allegations. ManorCare released a statement saying it would not comment, but that the “court filings throughout this matter will speak for themselves,” KFYR noted. 

Forty-four residents were infected at ManorCare and two of them filed a lawsuit against the skilled nursing home in Minot, ND, in April. Hepatitis C is spread through the blood of an infected person, with needles being a common source. 

The number of those affected in the outbreak makes up one-fourth of all hepatitis C infections in the nation since 2008, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.