Los Angeles is in the midst of a growing outbreak of flea-borne typhus, and the city's downtown areas and homeless population is being hit especially hard.

It's not uncommon to see clusters of cases each year in the area because flea-borne typhus is endemic in Los Angeles County. However, in recent years, the average number of reported cases has doubled to nearly 60 cases per year. In 2018 alone there have already been 63 cases of typhus in the county, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Cases have been identified in downtown Los Angeles, Pasadena, and Willowbrook.

Typhus refers to a group of infectious diseases caused by Rickettsia bacteria, which can be spread to humans by fleas, ticks, mites (chiggers), and body lice. It's not the same as typhoid fever, a bacterial infection that spreads through contaminated food and water and can be prevented with a vaccine.


Flea-borne typhus, also called endemic or murine typhus, is transmitted to humans when they are bitten by fleas infected with Rickettsia typhi or R. felis. The fleas poop after biting, and people can get sick when the infected flea feces are rubbed into the eyes or cuts or scrapes on the skin. It is not spread from person to person.