Abdul El-Sayed wages war on RFK Jr over diarrhea lettuce parasite outbreak that he claims was caused by CDC staff-cuts

Abdul El-Sayed has fired a warning shot at Robert F Kennedy Jr over this summer's record outbreak of a diarrhea-causing parasite linked to lettuce. The Michigan senator-elect told CNN on Thursday that he would hold the Health and Human Services Secretary accountable for the outbreak earlier this year of cyclospora, a parasite that causes explosive diarrhea, which hit his state hardest. He said: 'This is not about retribution for something past. This is about understanding what happened, holding people accountable for what they did and then solving the problem moving forward.''When you nominate someone like RFK Jr who is anti-science to run HHS, what you get is a bunch of nasty crap lettuce in the state of Michigan,' he added. 'So my position is I'm gonna assume I'm not going to support you until proven otherwise. So the bar is going to be extremely high.'Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) figures show there were more than 12,000 people sickened across 21 states from cyclospora, the largest outbreak linked to the parasite ever recorded in the US.It was traced back to shredded lettuce sold in Taco Bell and other restaurants that had been imported from a Taylor Farms facility in Mexico. The CDC officially reported about 6,000 cases in Michigan, the epicenter of the outbreak, but state figures show a potentially far greater toll. Michigan health authorities count more than 15,000 cases over the course of the outbreak, which was declared over in September. Michigan senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed vows to hold Robert F Kennedy Junior accountable Michigan also reported two deaths, the only fatalities in the outbreak, in individuals with underlying conditions. El-Sayed blamed cuts to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and CDC for leaving the agencies scrambling as the parasite sickened thousands across the US. On the Sunday before the midterms, El-Sayed also spoke about cyclospora, saying that, if elected, one of his priorities would be passing legislation targeting causes of the outbreak. 'For a long time here in Michigan, right, over the summer, there were a lot of people who ate lettuce and then had, you know, they ate the s*** lettuce. And we shouldn’t have s*** lettuce in the United States of America,' he said. 'We have to rebuild the part of the FDA that makes sure that people are eating lettuce where other people have not s***.'He added: 'And we need to make sure that the CDC can count the number of cases of s*** lettuce. It’s a clean bill.'The first cases in the outbreak were recorded in June. By July, RFK Jr had declared that it was 'under control,' dismissing claims that his staffing cuts had hampered the response as 'invalid.''We had no cuts in the surveillance program,' he said at the time. 'We did cuts in the FoodNet program, but they were redundant surveillance.'On September 11, the CDC declared the outbreak over.More than 12,000 cases were recorded as part of the outbreak, but the agency said the true number was likely much higher, saying that many patients likely recovered at home without receiving treatment. CDC data shows people sickened in the outbreak were about 47 years old on average and 56 percent female. Typically, there are a handful of cases reported nationwide. Michigan usually records around 50 cases of the parasite every year. Michigan senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed has vowed to hold Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. accountable over the explosive diarrhea parasite outbreak linked to lettuce El-Sayed is pictured above during a midterm election night watch party in Detroit, MichiganTypically spread through consuming food or water contaminated with human feces, cyclospora, the parasite that causes cyclosporiasis, triggers 'explosive' diarrhea, abdominal cramps and vomiting in patients.In serious cases, it may trigger severe dehydration, which can be fatal.In the US, most cases are typically linked to international travel or imported produce from regions where the parasite is common, including Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.Fresh produce can become contaminated if it is washed or irrigated with water contaminated by human sewage.Previous outbreaks have been linked to bagged salad kits, cilantro, basil and other leafy greens. Cyclosporiasis typically causes explosive diarrhea, abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting and fatigue. Unlike norovirus or routine food poisoning, however, symptoms often come and go rather than resolving after a few days.Without treatment, experts say the illness can persist for weeks or repeatedly return.Anyone with diarrhea lasting more than a few days should seek medical care and specifically ask for a cyclospora test, as it is not routinely ordered, Dr Swapnil Patel, vice chair of medicine at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center, previously told the Daily Mail.The test detects cyclospora DNA in stool samples and typically requires one to three samples.Treatment for the infection consists of the antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, sold under the brand names Bactrim, Septra and Cotrim.