Jail inmate tests positive for tuberculosis

CATLETTSBURG, Ky. - Eastern Kentucky health officials are testing nearly 300 people for tuberculosis after a man being held at a jail tested positive for the disease.

Ashland-Boyd County Health Department spokeswoman Kristy Bolen told The Independent that the man was getting a routine medical pre-screening on Wednesday at the Boyd County Detention Center when he told a nurse that there was a possibility he was infected. Bolen said lab results confirmed the diagnosis.

She said the inmate, whose identity wasn't released, is being treated in isolation at a hospital.

Bolen said TB skin tests will be given to approximately 220 inmates and about 50 jail employees and law enforcement officers who might have been exposed to the disease.