UPDATE: Bartaco passes inspection, reopens

TESTS: More than 1,700 treated following hepatitis scare at bartaco

Bartaco, a popular Port Chester restaurant, temporarily shut down because of potential hepatitis A exposure, according to the Westchester County Department of Health.

An employee of bartaco with the illness worked while infectious, according to county health officials.

The Health Department is pushing patrons who visited bartaco between Oct. 12 and Oct. 23 to receive preventative treatment while they still can. The Port Chester school district sent out an email this morning alerting people about the Health Department's recommendation.

HEPATITIS:What you need to know

Preventative treatment is only effective if given within two weeks of exposure, according to the Health Department, so those who dined at the restaurant on Oct. 12 need to receive treatment no later than Thursday.

The Health Department will offer free preventative treatments at the Westchester County Center in White Plains on these dates for people who ate or drank at bartaco:

Thursday (Oct. 26) from 4 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.

Friday (Oct. 27) from noon to 4:45 p.m.

Saturday (Oct. 28) from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The county Health Department said people who ate or drank at bartaco from Aug. 22 to Oct. 11, which is outside of the preventative treatment window, may also have been exposed to hepatitis A.

Those people are encouraged to contact their health care provider if they experience symptoms, which commonly appear within 28 days of exposure, with a range of 15 to 50 days.

“Hepatitis A is generally a mild illness whose symptoms include fatigue, fever, poor appetite, abdominal pain, diarrhea, dark urine, light colored stool and jaundice, which is the yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes,” Commissioner of Health Dr. Sherlita Amler said in a statement. "There are no special medications used to treat a person once symptoms appear, but hepatitis A transmission to others can be prevented through proper handwashing.”

bartaco is vaccinating all its employees with the hepatitis A vaccine and will reopen after its has been re-inspected and approved by the Westchester County Department of Health. The next inspection is scheduled for Thursday.

The county Health Department said bartaco has been cooperating fully and is making resources available for patrons and employees.

“We are committed to food safety and the quality of our food,” bartaco spokesperson Pam Ritz said in a statement. “We have set up a dedicated phone line for any guests who may wish to ask us questions directly and we encourage our guests to reach out at 844-617-8242, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.”

Twitter: @ChrisEberhart2