In 1990, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a large outbreak of of nosocomial multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) across Florida and New York.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by bacteria that most often affects the lungs. It spreads through the air when people with TB cough, sneeze or spit. Tuberculosis is preventable and curable. About a quarter of the global population is estimated to have been infected with TB bacteria.