Missouri health officials are shortening the time health providers have to report evidence of Legionnaires’ Disease.
The emergency rule change is meant to help the state act more aggressively in stopping the spread of the illness.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the number of cases of Legionnaires’ climbed 500 percent between 2000 and 2017.
In the last 5 years, 814 people have contracted the disease in Missouri.
The disease is a severe form of pneumonia and is contracted by breathing infected mist or steam.