Epidemiologic Surveillance in Israel of Cryptosporidium, a Unique Waterborne Notifiable Pathogen, and Public Health Policy.

Background: Cryptosporidium is a major threat to water supplies worldwide. Various biases and obstacles in case identification are recognized. In Israel, Cryptosporidiosis was included among notifiable diseases in 2001 in order to determine the burden of parasite-inflicted morbidity and to justify budgeting a central drinking water filtration plant.