6,000 more Exeter Hospital patients need to be tested for Hep C

Another 6,000 Exeter Hospital patients are being asked to get tested for hepatitis C. State health officials on Tuesday announced a major expansion of their screening program related to the viral outbreak at Exeter Hospital. Anyone who had an operation at Exeter Hospital or who was admitted to the intensive care unit between April 2011 and May 25, 2012, is now being asked to get tested for the liver disease. The recommendation excludes patients who underwent ambulatory surgery. The recommendation came less than a week after federal prosecutors announced the arrest of a medical technician who allegedly spread the virus to patients.