BANGOR, Maine — The city of Bangor is planning a hepatitis A vaccination campaign targeting the unhoused population, who are at greater risk for contracting the disease, according to a 2020 study.
The vaccine drive is a joint effort between Bangor’s public health department and Penobscot Community Health Care. Vaccines will be available to the public in areas around the city frequented by the homeless, including the Bangor Public Library and multiple warming shelters.
Patty Hamilton, the director of public health in Bangor, said the success of the campaign hinges on community outreach.
“We just have to go meet people where they’re at,” Hamilton said Tuesday, “And that’s the idea of going to some warming centers and some other sites like the library and places where people might be.”
Hamilton added that the push to vaccinate the city against hepatitis A is not in response to an outbreak — of which there is none currently — but rather a preventative measure.
Still, some of her reason for launching this vaccination campaign is rooted in what has happened in other parts of the state. Most notably, the spike in cases in Portland in the fall of 2023.
Portland health officials said robust vaccination could have blunted the severity of the issue.
“Certainly not having been vaccinated, not having a history of vaccination did increase cases,” Bridget Rauscher, the city of Portland’s Clinical Services Manager, said Tuesday.
According to Hamilton, hepatitis A cases are not seasonal but can crop up any time of year.
Even though vaccines are given in two doses, even one dose is highly effective against the disease.