According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a communicable disease is one "that spreads from one person to another or from an animal to a person, or from a surface or a food."
The American Public Health Association notes that there are ways to help prevent communicable diseases: "Vaccinations have helped eliminate or greatly reduced disease threats. Proper handwashing, especially before and after handling food and using the toilet, helps keep germs at bay."
Monongalia County Health Department is part of a coordinated nationwide network to respond to the threat of communicable diseases. Monongalia County Health Department houses several programs that focus on the prevention, surveillance and control of infectious diseases.
State law requires health-care providers, hospitals and laboratories to report suspected or confirmed cases of certain diseases. Many of these cases are investigated by Monongalia County Health Department's Infection Control & Disease Prevention staff as they work to to halt the further spread of disease.