TB News - October 2026

Washington State Department of Health sent this bulletin at 10/09/2026 03:45 PM PDT

October 2026

Targeted Testing and Treatment for Latent Tuberculosis Infection (LTBI) in Washington State

Targeted testing for tuberculosis (TB) is a strategy to diagnose and treat LTBI among people who are at risk of developing TB disease. Treating LTBI supports TB elimination goals through preventing TB disease and stopping the spread of TB to others. Longstanding, untreated LTBI accounts for approximately 80% of TB cases in the United States. Targeted testing activities include seeking, enlisting, and registering people for targeted testing and evaluating and treating those with LTBI.

Beginning in 2025, all CDC-funded TB programs in the United States are required to submit state-level aggregated targeted testing data by March 31 of each subsequent year. As a CDC-funded jurisdiction, we completed this activity, after meeting and strategizing with multiple Local Health Jurisdictions (LHJs) on project development and implementation. These data are the only targeted testing and follow-up LTBI treatment data collected in the state and provide an opportunity to monitor and examine these important activities.

Twelve (12) LHJ TB programs reported targeted testing data in 2026 either through WDRS or in aggregate directly to the DOH TB Program. These activities include targeted testing from 2024, now considered final, and from 2025, considered preliminary until March 31, 2027. This brief report summarizes targeted testing projects, administrative targeted testing, and referral testing data.

In 2024 and 2025, 196 people were sought, enlisted, registered, or referred for targeted testing, and over 90% of them were evaluated for TB infection. Of the 177 people evaluated during targeted testing projects, a vast majority (93.8%) were reported to be evaluated using at least 1 Interferon Gamma Release Assay (IGRA).

Of the 177 people evaluated, 64 (36.2%) were diagnosed with LTBI and none were diagnosed with TB disease. Many people diagnosed with LTBI were considered candidates for LTBI treatment (40; 62.5%) with 15 (37.5%) of those candidates starting treatment. Of the candidates who started LTBI treatment, 11 (73.3%) had completed their treatment as of March 2026. Although there remains room for improvement, the targeted testing LTBI treatment completion rate in Washington is higher than the national rate of 68.5%. Assuming 10% of people with untreated LTBI will develop TB disease in their lifetime and that LTBI treatment is highly effective, while the benefits of LTBI treatment may not be immediately visible, the 11 treatment completions achieved this period are projected to reduce future TB disease and represent approximately $5,060 in avoided TB-related burden, highlighting the value of investing in prevention before illness occurs.

Every day, the state and LHJ TB programs across Washington work diligently to improve the health and well-being of people in our communities by implementing targeted testing activities. These 2024-2025 targeted testing activities successfully identified persons with LTBI, helped them reduce their future TB disease risk, and avoided future TB-related costs that impact their family, friends, and our public health and health care systems. We thank our LHJ partners for their targeted testing work! However, successful treatment of LTBI continues to be hindered by misunderstandings surrounding LTBI and TB disease, those with LTBI declining to take treatment, and losing contact with people during our public health follow-up. We look forward to helping overcome these challenges with future targeted testing work.

📚 Apple Health Changes: New Multilingual Resources Available

Last month, we shared information from the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) about upcoming changes to Apple Health (Medicaid).

Some changes began October 1, 2026, with additional changes taking effect in 2027.

The Washington Immigrant Information Center has published new, multilingual resources to help clients, providers, and community partners understand how these changes may affect Apple Health coverage.

🤝Thank you King County Downtown Pharmacy

During October, we would like to recognize our partnership with the Public Health-Seattle & King County Downtown Pharmacy during American Pharmacists' Month (APhM). This partnership serves all of Washington State's county health departments by storing, repackaging, and shipping the TB medications we purchase. The staff there, in particular Pharmacist Bhavna Narsai and Pharmacy Tech Julie Carino, help us serve local communities everyday with our shared goal of helping make people with TB well again.

Thank you, Public Health-Seattle & King County Downtown Pharmacy team!

Information for Local Health Jurisdictions (LHJs)

📅 Targeted Testing Project Reminder

For LHJs receiving 2026 DOH TB funding through the Consolidated Contract (ConCon), implementation of and reporting on at least 1 targeted testing project is required by 12/31/2026. We encourage all LHJs to consider how they might collaboratively reach groups at higher risk for TB in their communities for screening and evaluate potential partner organizations for targeted testing work, and we encourage reporting of targeted testing projects via WDRS. If reporting via WDRS is not feasible, aggregate reporting to the DOH TB Program is an acceptable alternative.

All targeted testing data reported will be aggregated at the Washington state level and reported to CDC partners per federal requirements.

For more information, please see the Targeted Testing resources section on the TB Partners SharePoint, including templates for reporting targeted testing data.

💊 Reminder: TB Medications for People Under or Uninsured

With some people losing Apple Health/Medicaid health insurance coverage as of October 1 and additional people potentially losing coverage after the first of the year, remember that DOH has TB medication for people with TB disease who are uninsured or underinsured.

Please check out this flyer for more information and reach out to our program if you have questions not addressed here (TBServices@doh.wa.gov).

📦 Nebulizer (Sputum Induction Kits) Available

We have 2 Sputum Induction Starter Kits remaining. Each kit includes a nebulizer and 15 disposable mouthpiece hose kits.

If your LHJ needs an additional kit or its first kit, please use the order form: Nebulizer Starter Kits.

The TB Partners SharePoint page also includes guidance and resources to support your team and Health Officer.

📢Fall NTIP Snapshot Reports

NTIP Snapshot Reports and line lists were distributed on September 25. These resources are intended to help in understanding local level NTIP indicators and can help identify program strengths and areas for improvement. The WA DOH TB Program highly encourages LHJs to utilize the NTIP Snapshot Report and accompanying materials to conduct your own, internal review. Here is a quick description of each document for reference:

NTIP Snapshot Report: The Snapshot Report provides an overview of the NTIP indicators for both LHJ and state level data. The one-pager includes the number of active TB cases counted, TB incidence rates, and NTIP indicators for case management, laboratory reporting, contact identification, and the examination of immigrants and refugees. *New* At the request of an LHJ, the formatting has been updated to include the denominator (N) for each indicator, as this varies based on the indicator inclusion criteria. You will notice that the indicator rows now have a format of X.XX% (N).
NTIP Line List: Using this workbook, you can see which records were included in indicator calculations and whether the indicator was met. The “introduction” sheet in the workbook will help you interpret the line lists.
NTIP Guide: Please utilize the NTIP Guide as a resource while reviewing your NTIP Snapshot Report and line list. This guide provides more detail for each NTIP indicator. Each page outlines the indicator calculation, considerations when reviewing the line list, and tips to meet the indicator. We recommend bookmarking this document in your web browser because it is frequently updated as more tips are learned over time.

For more information on NTIP, check out CDC's webpage here: National Tuberculosis Indicators Project (NTIP)

Upcoming Events and Education Opportunities

August 31 – November 6 | Level 1: TB Basics, Contact Investigation, and Latent TB Infection

The Curry International TB Center (CITC) online, asynchronous training for nurses and public health/disease control investigators can be accessed, started, and revisited at any time during the 10-week course term.

September 22 – November 10, 2026 | TB in Women Series

This webinar series will focus on TB in women of childbearing age, focusing on reproductive health, pregnancy, and postpartum care. Topics include epidemiology, pharmacokinetics, fertility, diagnosis and treatment during pregnancy, and postpartum management. This webinar is hosted by the Global TB Institute at Rutgers (GTBI).

October 15, 2026 | Clinical Management of Tuberculosis in Older Adults

This Mayo Clinic Center for TB course is designed for allied health professionals, nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, physician assistants, resident/fellows, and healthcare professionals working in a public healthcare setting.

October 15 – 16, 2026 | International Workshop on Clinical Pharmacology of Tuberculosis Drugs

This abstract-driven workshop has been a leading annual meeting in the field of tuberculosis (TB) pharmacology since 2008. The aim of the meeting is to contribute to the optimization of TB treatment by providing an independent platform for the presentation and discussion of the latest scientific developments in TB pharmacology.

October 20, 2026 | Webinar: Rethinking How We Talk About Public Health and Democracy

Join the American Public Health Association (APHA) Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) for this one-hour workshop with Jennifer Messenger, public health lead at Metropolitan Group. Public health relies on a functioning, inclusive, and participatory democracy. And healthy people are better able to participate in voting, civil dialogue, and ongoing involvement. The values and core elements of a healthy democracy are widely embraced across political ideologies, giving us a powerful starting point to make the case for public health and bring more people into the coalition. ASL interpretation will be available for this webinar. Register for FREE!

November 4, 2026 | Ask the Expert Q&A / Panel

This interactive webinar from the Mayo Clinic Center for TB will feature an Ask the Expert Q&A panel addressing pre-submitted and live participant questions. Multidisciplinary experts will provide practical insights and real-time discussion on key TB-related topics.

November 17 – 20, 2026 | 2026 Union World Conference on Lung Health

The Union World Conference on Lung Health in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil brings together researchers, practitioners, advocates, policymakers and communities from around the world to share knowledge, exchange ideas and accelerate progress in lung health.

November 19, 2026 | TB Meningitis in Pediatrics: Clinical Insights and Steroid Tapering Strategies

This Mayo Clinic Center for TB session will explore extra-pulmonary tuberculosis in children and adolescents, with a focus on TB meningitis and practical considerations for steroid tapering.

December 1, 2026 | Innovations in TB - HIV Edition

This Mayo Clinic Center for TB webinar reviews strategies for diagnosing and treating TB-HIV co-infection, key challenges, and emerging research.

December 17, 2026 | TB Vaccine Research and Future Directions

This Mayo Clinic Center for TB webinar reviews current TB vaccine candidates relative to the BCG standard, explains their mechanisms, and explores future research directions.

On-Demand Talking Health Training

Launched by the de Beaumont Foundation, this free, virtual, self-paced training was designed by and for public health professionals. The Talking Health training, based on de Beaumont’s bestselling book Talking Health: A New Way to Communicate About Public Health, helps public health professionals boost their communications skills through practical, tangible, and immediately actionable lessons based on their real-life situations and challenges. Over approximately 6 hours, 5 interactive modules focus on:

Introduction and the state of public health communications, including what it means for communications to be effective
Messaging strategy and research-based best practices
Defining the audience and tailoring communications to them
Public health storytelling, incorporating data and community values
Message testing and capstone project

Visit the Talking Health On-Demand Training site to learn more and to enroll.

Washington's TB Project ECHO

On select Tuesdays 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. PT, join the lunch-time virtual discussion about real TB cases with your peers. This free interactive event is guided by a panel of local TB experts. Click here for more information about this local project and our partners who make this ongoing event possible.

SEATRAC Seminar Series

SEATRAC hosts and promotes seminars, one Friday session per month from 12 –1 p.m., focused on TB basic and clinical sciences by local trainees', local and visiting faculty, and special guests.

Video Recordings and Education Opportunities

Mayo Clinic Center for TB

Recorded Webinars (credits not available)
Foundations in Tuberculosis Course (credits available)
LTBI 101 for Healthcare Professionals (credits not available)

CITC Archived Webinars
CME/CE units not available for most of these trainings.

Rutgers TB Institute Webinar Archives
CE units are not available for these archives.

SNTC Archived Webinars
CME/CE units are not offered for these trainings.

SNTC Online Courses
CME units are offered for these trainings. .

The Union

TB ECHO Recorded Archives
Missed a TB ECHO^® session? TB ECHO^®has didactic presentations available for viewing on YouTube. Handouts related to the presentation are included where appropriate. Watch recorded TB ECHO®.

Tools and Resources

Minnesota's Center of Excellence in Newcomer Health

Access helpful tools, trainings, and updates for newcomers and refugee health here.

CDC

CDC Learning Connection.
CDC TRAIN is a comprehensive catalog of free public health training opportunities from the Public Health Foundation. For TB-related trainings, click here.
Visit Everyday Words for Public Health Communication to find plain language alternatives for public health jargon.
TB Personal Stories patient videos to help raise awareness about TB in the US.
we are TB offers comprehensive peer support for current TB patients and TB clinics, including weekly live support group sessions.

DOH Refugee and Immigrant Health Program

Afghan Health Resources - Fact sheets, webinars, videos, and other health resources (scroll down for TB resources).
Ukrainian Health Resources - Fact sheets, webinars, videos, and other health resources to support new arrivals from Ukraine (scroll down for TB resources).

Southeastern National TB Center

Individualized Country Guides

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