Massachusetts Reports 3 Human Cases Of West Nile Virus

BOSTON (AP) — State officials are reporting the first three confirmed human cases of mosquito-borne West Nile Virus in Massachusetts this year.

The Department of Public Health said Friday that none of the cases was fatal, though two required hospitalization. They involved a woman in her 70s from Worcester County, a woman in her 60s from Middlesex County, and woman in her 50s from Suffolk County.

Officials said a horse that was stabled in Hampshire County also contracted West Nile Virus and had to be euthanized.

On Tuesday, the agency announced it was raising the risk level for West Nile Virus from low to moderate throughout the state. It asked people to avoid mosquito bites using repellents, wearing long pants and long sleeves and getting rid of standing water.

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