Managing The Unseen Risk: What’s Behind The Increasing Reports Of Legionella Outbreaks?

Since its discovery in 1976 following an outbreak at a Philadelphia hotel hosting a namesake conference for the American Legion, Legionnaires’ disease has garnered national attention from the general public and stakeholders, including building owners, facility operators, medical professionals, risk managers, insurers, and attorneys.

Outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease frequently make headlines in part due to high-dollar demands or settlements ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars. Defendants face damage to reputation, loss of future business, and costly litigation.

Within the past year, news coverage of Legionnaires’ disease has implicated a casino resort in Las Vegas, a hotel in the UK, a VA hospital in Illinois, federal buildings in Canada, and the municipal water system in Flint, Michigan. Often, such claims are brought absent conclusive clinical and environmental evidence linking an individual’s disease with the alleged site of exposure.