CDC Investigating Another Multistate E. Coli Outbreak Linked to Chipotle

The CDC is investing another outbreak of E. coli linked to Chipotle

ByABC News
December 21, 2015, 3:51 PM

— -- The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is investigating another, more recent outbreak of E.coli linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill.

The latest outbreak includes five cases — one in Kansas, one in North Dakota and three in Oklahoma — the CDC said. The illnesses started from Nov. 18 to 26, 2015, the CDC said.

All those who got sick reported eating at Chipotle in the week before they fell ill, officials said.

"We have indicated before that we expected that we may see additional cases stemming from this, and CDC is now reporting some additional cases," the company said in a statement. "Since this issue began, we have completed a comprehensive reassessment of our food safety programs with an eye to finding best practices for each of the ingredients we use."

The spokesperson also told ABC News that all of those sickened in the new cases ate at one of two restaurants in Kansas and Oklahoma. The chain's founder and CEO, Steve Ells, announced early this month that the restaurant would implement new sanitation procedures and additional food safety training in the response to the outbreak.

The new cases come as Chipotle is under investigation for a separate outbreak of E.coli in October. The majority of these cases were reported in Washington and Oregon. However, there were also a small number of reports from California, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. As of Dec. 18, 53 people have reported getting sick and 20 have been hospitalized.

Those infected range from 1 to 94 years old. There have been no reported deaths due to the outbreak.

ABC's Nicole Sawyer contributed reporting to this story.