Health commish calls for better MRSA reporting

At least 23 suspected or confirmed cases of the potentially deadly bacterial infection MRSA have been reported at three Stark County campuses since September 2006.

But despite the apparently high number of infections caused by the staph bacteria -- pronounced Murh-suh and whose formal name is methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- Stark County Health Commissioner William Franks doesn't know how many MRSA cases have occurred in the county. That's because hospitals aren't required to tell him.