Report suggests the FDA covered up E. coli outbreak that killed 1 person, spread to 15 states

The federal government covered up an outbreak of E. coli that killed one person and spread across at least 15 states, according to a report published April 17.

A series of E. coli cases was first reported in November in St. Louis County, Mo., but the Food and Drug Administration never released any information about the outbreak, NBC News reported.

“There were no public communications related to this outbreak,” the FDA wrote in its own internal report obtained by NBC News.

The outbreak spread to 15 states and killed at least one person, though the case was not discussed in the FDA’s internal report. The outbreak was declared over in February.

The first cases were detected in early November 2024, stemming from romaine lettuce consumed at a high school in St. Louis County, according to the report. The county health department eventually confirmed 115 cases of E. coli, 13 of which sent people to the hospital.

Similar E. coli infections were reported across the Great Plains and Midwest states, stretching from Montana to Pennsylvania, the FDA report said. However, the food regulators did not officially connect the outbreak to any companies or brands.

Federal law does not require the FDA to disclose deadly food-based disease outbreaks, but the agency has customarily released data on all such cases. For example, in 2022, the FDA warned about hepatitis A in fresh strawberries and E. coli in packaged salads, even though no recalls were ordered in either case.

“It is disturbing that FDA hasn’t said anything more public or identified the name of a grower or processor,” ex-FDA employee Frank Yiannas told NBC News.

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