Report: Pittsburgh hospital deaths linked to mold

Amy R. Connolly

Health inspectors linked mold-infected linens used at two University of Pittsburgh Medical Center hospitals to the deaths of five patients since 2014. Photo courtesy UPMC

Health inspectors linked mold-infected bed sheets and other freshly cleaned linens used at two University of Pittsburgh Medical Center hospitals to the deaths of five patients since 2014.

A report, commissioned by the university medical center, found evidence of the mold at the hospitals and many areas of the Paris Healthcare Linen facility, a Pennsylvania-based company that handled the hospitals' linen. For nearly two years, investigators have been trying to pinpoint the source of the mold.

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center commissioned the report privately after three people died.

Five people have died in connection the to mold, including two organ transplant patients, the patient's families and attorneys said. The family of Daniel Krieg, 56, who died after contracting a fungal infection at the hospital, filed a lawsuit against the hospital.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially investigated the complaint in fall 2015 but did not find the source of the mold. The CDC said it has no plans to reopen an investigation unless requested by the state health department.

Paris Healthcare did not comment on the findings but said, "Every day, Paris Companies processes and delivers hygienically safe linens to hospitals and health care institutions across Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Ohio and West Virginia."