Trump officials exerting unprecedented control over CDC scientific journal
"The MMWR has lost its autonomy," one health official told CBS News.
Trump administration political appointees have taken steps in recent weeks to exert unprecedented influence over the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's flagship medical research publication, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, multiple federal health officials tell CBS News. The interference included dictating what to cover and withholding studies on the growing bird flu outbreak.
Live Bird Markets Ordered to Close in New York After Avian Flu Is Found
“While I am glad that finally the governor is waking up to what a serious hazard to the public these markets hold, it is not enough to merely shut them down for one week,” said Edita Birnkrant, the executive director of New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets, an animal rights group that has documented what it describes as the “horrific conditions” at live markets for several years.
New bird flu variant in cattle adds to concerns about federal response under Trump
The strain of bird flu is distinct from what has previously been found in dairy cattle. The finding raises some worrying questions — and concerns over the Trump administration's muted response.
The variant, known as D1.1 genotype, belongs to a different genetic lineage than what's fueled the infections in dairy cattle over the past year.
Scientists believe a single spillover event, from birds to cattle, in the Texas Panhandle in late 2023 seeded the current nationwide outbreak. But this new finding points to at least one additional instance of the virus hopping into dairy cattle.
"It shows that even if you get rid of one virus that's established itself, another one can pop up like whack-a-mole," says Michael Worobey, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Arizona.
C.D.C. Posts, Then Deletes, Data on Bird Flu Spread Between Cats and People
In one household, an infected cat might have spread the virus to another cat and to a human adolescent, according to a copy of the data table obtained by The New York Times. The cat died four days after symptoms began. In a second household, an infected dairy farmworker appears to have been the first to show symptoms, and a cat then became ill two days later and died on the third day.
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Experts said that the finding that cats might have passed the virus to people was not entirely unexpected. But they were alarmed that the finding had not yet been released to the public.
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Scientists have long known that cats are highly susceptible to the virus. At least 85 domestic cats have been infected since late 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. But there had not previously been any documented cases of cats passing the virus to people.
Discovery Of 12 Dead Geese Prompts Park Closure, Bird Flu Concerns In Westchester
The U.S. has seen 61 confirmed human cases to date.
"Unfortunately, there are a growing number of Avian Flu cases across the state and beyond. All of us need to be aware of the potential health risks posed to humans and be sure to report but not go near a dead bird as the chances are high that it will be infected,"
Waffle House is passing along the sky high cost of eggs to diners with a 50 cent surcharge
The Waffle House restaurant chain is putting a 50 cent per egg surcharge in place temporarily due to the biggest bird flu outbreak in a decade.
Bird flu is forcing farmers to slaughter millions of chickens a month, pushing U.S. egg prices to more than double their cost in the summer of 2023. And it appears there may be no relief in sight with Easter approaching.
The average price per dozen eggs nationwide hit $4.15 in December. That’s not quite as high as the $4.82 record set two years ago, but the Agriculture Department predicts egg prices are going to soar another 20% this year.
Health Advisory: Accelerated Subtyping of Influenza A in Hospitalized Patient
CDC is now recommending ordering subtyping for all influenza A-positive specimens collected from hospitalized individuals within 24 hours of hospital admission to help rapidly detect any human cases of avian influenza A(H5N1).
On the frontline against bird flu, egg farmers fear they're losing the battle
The tools the US used to contain previous bird flu outbreaks just aren't working this time, according to some agricultural experts. Some egg farmers have called for vaccinations for poultry.
[...] egg farms have had to invest millions of dollars into biosecurity. Employees shower in and shower out, before they start working and after their shifts ends to prevent spreading the virus.
But none of that has been enough to contain the outbreak that started three years ago.
Several hundred ducks found dead from suspected bird flu along Lake Michigan
The largest concentrations of sick mergansers were found Saturday at North Avenue Beach and Oak Street Beach. Other birds with symptoms were reported from Hyde Park to Wilmette between Friday and Sunday.
Hundreds of red-breasted mergansers have been found either dead or sick over the past few days along Lake Michigan in Chicago and into the northern suburbs.
Officials suspect that highly contagious bird flu is the cause of the illnesses found in the mergansers, a species of diving duck that winters in the Great Lakes region.
Trump Administration’s Halt of CDC’s Weekly Scientific Report Stalls Bird Flu Studies
An unprecedented freeze on the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report sparks new concerns about political meddling in science.
One of the studies would reveal whether veterinarians who treat cattle have been unknowingly infected by the bird flu virus. Another report documents cases in which people carrying the virus might have infected their pet cats.
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“It would be the equivalent of finding out that your local fire department has been told not to sound any fire alarms,”In addition to publishing studies, the MMWR keeps the country updated on outbreaks, poisonings, and maternal mortality, and provides surveillance data on cancer, heart disease, HIV, and other maladies. Delaying or manipulating the reports could harm Americans by stunting the ability of the U.S. government to detect and curb health threats, Frieden said.
Bird flu now ‘widespread' in Massachusetts, officials warn
State environmental and health officials said Wednesday that bird flu is suspected to be the cause of death in cases of both wild and domestic birds in several…
State officials said they have seen recurring incidents of bird flu since early 2022, but this month, a bird flu outbreak is suspected of causing the death of dozens of Canada geese, swans and other birds at Plymouth's Billington Sea.
Why scientists' fears about bird flu are intensifying
Bird flu, or avian influenza, is spreading among livestock and other mammals in the United States, raising concerns that another pandemic may be looming. Last month, California declared a state of emergency due to rising cases in dairy cattle, and there have been over 65 human cases in the U.S. during this outbreak. While cases have been largely mild and risk to the public is still considered low, scientists warn it could evolve and become more dangerous.
Curious about other health updates? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.
Latest Developments on Avian Flu Virus in Dairy Cattle
To date, 929 dairy herds in 16 states have been found to be carrying Highly-Pathological Avian Influenza (HPAI), a virus originally found in wild birds and usually associated with turkey and poultry flocks. There have been 48 confirmed cases in the past 30 days, all of them concentrated in California and Michigan.
Biden administration allocates $306m in its final days for bird flu response
‘Critical’ funding comes as H5N1 outbreak intensifies and will go toward developing a response to the virus
As the outbreak intensifies, the US should continue investing in pandemic response like wastewater monitoring, vaccine manufacturing and distribution, rapid test development and other pressing needs to curtail the outbreak, experts say.
But it’s not clear whether the incoming Trump administration will continue such work.
How Worried to Be About Bird Flu
A conversation with Katherine J. Wu about the spread of the virus so far
At this point, I would upgrade it to “medium-plus.” I don’t think I will upgrade to “high” unless we start to see strong evidence of human-to-human transmission. I am not ruling out that possibility, but we aren’t there yet.
Bird Flu Is a National Embarrassment
America should have more aggressively intervened almost a year ago.
Three years ago, when it was trickling into the United States, the bird-flu virus that recently killed a man in Louisiana was, to most Americans, an obscure and distant threat. Now it has spread through all 50 states, affecting more than 100 million birds, most of them domestic poultry; nearly 1,000 herds of dairy cattle have been confirmed to be harboring the virus too. At least 66 Americans, most of them working in close contact with cows, have fallen sick. A full-blown H5N1 pandemic is not guaranteed—the CDC judges the risk of one developing to be “moderate.” But this virus is fundamentally more difficult to manage than even a few months ago and is now poised to become a persistent danger to people.
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The U.S., in other words, might have routed the virus early on. Instead, agencies tasked with responding to outbreaks and upholding animal and human health held back on mitigation tactics—testing, surveillance, protective equipment, quarantines of potentially infected animals—from the very start. “We are underutilizing the tools available to us,” Carol Cardona, an avian-influenza expert at the University of Minnesota, told me. As the virus ripped through wild-animal populations, devastated the nation’s poultry, spilled into livestock, started infecting farmworkers, and accumulated mutations that signaled better adaptation to mammals, the country largely sat back and watched.When I asked experts if the outbreak had a clear inflection point—a moment at which it was crucial for U.S. leaders to more concertedly intervene—nearly all of them pointed to the late winter or early spring of last year, when farmers and researchers first confirmed that H5N1 had breached the country’s cattle, in the Texas panhandle. This marked a tipping point. The jump into cattle, most likely from wild birds, is thought to have happened only once. It may have been impossible to prevent. But once a pathogen is in domestic animals, Lakdawala told me, “we as humans have a lot of control.” Officials could have immediately halted cow transport, and organized a careful and concerted cull of infected herds. Perhaps the virus “would never have spread past Texas” and neighboring regions, Lakdawala told me. Dozens of humans might not have been infected.
How America lost control of the bird flu, setting the stage for another pandemic
Nearly a year into the first outbreak of the bird flu among cattle, the virus shows no sign of slowing. The U.S. government failed to eliminate the virus on dairy farms when it was confined to a handful of states, by quickly identifying infected cows and taking measures to keep their infections from spreading. Now at least 875 herds across 16 states have tested positive.
Experts say they have lost faith in the government’s ability to contain the outbreak.
How America Lost Control of the Bird Flu, Setting the Stage for Another Pandemic
Exclusive reporting reveals how the United States lost track of a virus that could cause the next pandemic. Problems like the sluggish pace of federal action, a deference to industry, and neglect for the safety of low-wage workers put the country at risk of another health emergency.
Together with emails obtained from local health departments through public records requests, this investigation revealed key problems, including deference to the farm industry, eroded public health budgets, neglect for the safety of agriculture workers, and the sluggish pace of federal interventions.
Case in point: The U.S. Department of Agriculture this month announced a federal order to test milk nationwide. Researchers welcomed the news but said it should have happened months ago — before the virus was so entrenched.
“It’s disheartening to see so many of the same failures that emerged during the covid-19 crisis reemerge,” said Tom Bollyky, director of the Global Health Program at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Bird Flu Has Spread Out of Control after Mistakes by U.S. Government and Industry
As the bird flu virus moved into cows and people, sluggish federal action, deference to industry and neglect for worker safety put the country at risk
Nearly a year into the first outbreak of the bird flu among cattle, the virus shows no sign of slowing. The U.S. government failed to eliminate the virus on dairy farms when it was confined to a handful of states, by quickly identifying infected cows and taking measures to keep their infections from spreading. Now at least 860 herds across 16 states have tested positive.
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Far more bird flu damage is inevitable, but the extent of it will be left to the Trump administration and Mother Nature. Already, the USDA has funneled more than $1.7 billion into tamping down the bird flu on poultry farms since 2022, which includes reimbursing farmers who’ve had to cull their flocks, and more than $430 million into combating the bird flu on dairy farms. In coming years, the bird flu may cost billions of dollars more in expenses and losses. Dairy industry experts say the virus kills roughly 2% to 5% of infected dairy cows and reduces a herd’s milk production by about 20%.Worse, the outbreak poses the threat of a pandemic. More than 60 people in the U.S. have been infected, mainly by cows or poultry, but cases could skyrocket if the virus evolves to spread efficiently from person to person. And the recent news of a person critically ill in Louisiana with bird flu shows that the virus can be dangerous.
Just a few mutations could allow the bird flu to spread between people. Because viruses mutate within human and animal bodies, each infection is like a pull of a slot machine lever.
“Even if there’s only a 5% chance of a bird flu pandemic happening, we’re talking about a pandemic that probably looks like 2020 or worse,” said Tom Peacock, a bird flu researcher at the Pirbright Institute in the United Kingdom, referring to COVID. “The U.S. knows the risk but hasn’t done anything to slow this down,” he added.
America’s Bird-Flu Luck Has Officially Run Out
Bird flu has spread so widely that it was always going to make someone seriously sick.
Yesterday, America had one of its worst days of bird flu to date. For starters, the CDC confirmed the country’s first severe case of human bird-flu infection. The patient, a Louisiana resident who is over the age of 65 and has underlying medical conditions, is in the hospital with severe respiratory illness and is in critical condition. This is the first time transmission has been traced back to exposure to sick and dead birds in backyard flocks. Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency after weeks of rising infections among dairy herds and people. In Los Angeles, public-health officials confirmed that two cats died after consuming raw milk that had been recalled due to a risk of bird-flu contamination.
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For months, experts have warned that bird flu would continue spreading among livestock and the people who work with them but that transmission among people was unlikely. And the CDC still says the public-health risk is low. “Everyday Americans should not be panicked by this news,” but they need to stay vigilant about bird flu, Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious-diseases expert at UC San Francisco, told me.America is giving the virus a lot of chances to infect people. Although efforts to control the virus, such as regular testing of herds and bulk testing of raw milk, are under way, they have clearly not been enough. The spread of the virus geographically and across mammalian species is unprecedented, Pitesky said. He believes that more efforts should be directed toward shifting waterfowl—ducks, geese, and other wild birds responsible for spreading H5N1—away from commercial farms, where the virus is most likely to be transmitted to humans. A shot for bird flu exists, and experts have urged the government to vaccinate farmworkers. “Farmers need help,” Pitesky said. As of this month, the Biden administration has no plans to authorize a human vaccine, making it likely that that choice will fall under the purview of Donald Trump.
Just as a severe case in America was inevitable, continued mutation is a given too. At this rate, the virus will adapt to infect human hosts, cause more serious disease, and result in human-to-human transmission “at some point,” Chin-Hong said. Earlier this month, a study published in Science by researchers at the Scripps Research Institute showed that a single mutation in the virus strain spreading among dairy herds could switch its preference from bird to human receptors. “In nature, the occurrence of this single mutation could be an indicator of human pandemic risk,” the paper’s editor wrote.
CDC Confirms First ‘Severe’ Case of H5N1 Bird Flu in U.S.
The U.S. has seen 61 confirmed human cases to date.
The severe case announced by the CDC on Wednesday was first confirmed on Dec. 13 after tests came back for a patient in Louisiana, the agency said in a press release. The virus in this case was identified as D1.1 genotype, which is related to other D1.1 cases that have been found in humans from Washington state and British Columbia, Canada. That genotype is different from the B3.13 genotype detected in dairy cows throughout the U.S. which has been the dominant method of human infection. The state of California, which has the highest number of known dairy herd infections in the country at 645, declared a state of emergency Wednesday.
Why the price of eggs is on the rise again
The price of eggs has risen by about 28% in the past year, largely due to outbreaks of avian flu. Those prices could continue to climb during the holidays, as demand for baked goods increases.
Prices have spiked in recent weeks due to a large bird flu outbreak at two Colorado chicken farms in July. That, paired with higher consumer demand, is contributing to the sticker shock many Americans may be experiencing in the aisles, experts say.
Is it time to freak out about bird flu?
you might be getting anxious. You might be worried that no one has figured out how one of the infected individuals, who lives in Missouri, contracted H5N1. Or you might recall that the virus has killed half of the 900-plus people known to have been infected with it over the past 27 years
USDA aims to isolate, exhaust H5N1 virus in dairy herds
Spillover of the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus to dairy cattle and the findings of a clinical, pathological and epidemiological investigation in nine affected farms are reported.
Here we report spillover of the HPAI H5N1 virus to dairy cattle across several states in the USA. The affected cows displayed clinical signs encompassing decreased feed intake, altered faecal consistency, respiratory distress and decreased milk production with abnormal milk. Infectious virus and viral RNA were consistently detected in milk from affected cows. Viral distribution in tissues via immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization revealed a distinct tropism of the virus for the epithelial cells lining the alveoli of the mammary gland in cows. Whole viral genome sequences recovered from dairy cows, birds, domestic cats and a raccoon from affected farms indicated multidirectional interspecies transmissions. Epidemiological and genomic data revealed efficient cow-to-cow transmission after apparently healthy cows from an affected farm were transported to a premise in a different state. These results demonstrate the transmission of the HPAI H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b virus at a non-traditional interface, underscoring the ability of the virus to cross species barriers.
The bird flu doom loop
Is bird flu here to stay?
Six workers contracted the virus, which made it the single most infectious bird flu event for humans in US history, more than doubling the number of Americans who had contracted the virus since April 2022.
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Experts told me it’s highly likely that it’s already endemic in wild birds, the original reservoir for the virus, who spread it to poultry farms in the spring and fall during migration.
Avian flu infects two more Colorado poultry cullers, one at second farm
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) today reported that another worker culling poultry a second large layer farm tested positive for H5N1 avian influenza in preliminary tests, just days after it reported another case at the first farm, raising the total number to seven.
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed initial positive results for H5N1 in two of Colorado's recent cases, detailed genetic sequencing findings from a sample from a sick Colorado poultry culler, and reported preliminary results from a seroprevalence study in Michigan farm workers.
USDA aims to isolate, exhaust H5N1 virus in dairy herds
The USDA’s strategy against bird flu in dairy cattle is to identify infected herds and wait for the virus to die out within the herds, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Monday. “I’m confident we have a good understanding of the virus and how it is being transferred,” he added.
The government has faced repeated questions about whether it knows for certain how widespread bird flu in cattle is. To date, H5N1 has been confirmed in 80 herds in nine states. The USDA requires dairy farmers to test lactating cows for bird flu before shipping them across state lines. It also offers money to dairy farms to improve their biosecurity standards against disease and will launch a voluntary program for weekly testing of milk samples drawn from bulk storage tanks on dairy farms.
Why aren’t we vaccinating birds against bird flu?
It’s not as complicated as it seems, but there’s one key hurdle.
the US has yet to adopt vaccination as a disease control strategy for bird flu. The US Department of Agriculture reported promising results from clinical trials of several vaccine candidates, but despite this breakthrough, a slew of logistical, political, and economic challenges might prohibit their use.
Bird flu's big question: What's driving its spread
https://www.axios.com/2024/05/03/bird-flu-humans-risk-cattle
Why it matters: Detecting viral spread early and limiting how long the flu circulates in a population of animals cuts the odds it will mutate and adapt to other species.
H5N1 virus can survive in rare-cooked meat, says USDA
Live H5N1 avian influenza can survive in meat cooked rare, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has found.
In a study conducted this week, USDA scientists discovered that hamburgers cooked at 120 degrees Fahrenheit – the temperature of a rare steak – contained live traces of a substitute bird flu virus.
Bird flu in milk is alarming — but not for the reason you think
The US Department of Agriculture’s failed response to bird flu in cows, explained.
Now it’s in the milk supply. On Tuesday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) confirmed that genetic evidence of the virus had been found in commercially purchased milk. However, it’s unclear whether the milk contains live virus or mere fragments of the virus that were killed by pasteurization, a process that destroys harmful bacteria, but remain detectable.
Ground-up chicken waste fed to cattle may be behind bird flu outbreak in US cows
Experts warn that lax regulations could also see the virus spread to US pig farms, with serious consequences for human health
Fears are growing that the H5N1 outbreak among cattle in the United States could have been caused by contaminated animal feed.
In contrast to Britain and Europe, American farmers are still allowed to feed cattle and other farm animals ground-up waste from other animals including birds.
Avian influenza vaccination: why it should not be a barrier to safe trade
With over 500 million birds lost to avian influenza worldwide, its devastating impact extends beyond animals, threatening livelihoods, food security and public health.
Avian influenza vaccination should be considered as part of a broader disease prevention and control strategy. This must include other provisions, such as biosecurity measures, disease surveillance for early detection, rapid response to outbreaks and a well-planned exit strategy. Vaccination can be a temporary measure to better control the disease situation. National Veterinary Authorities are charged with the decision to vaccinate based on a risk-evaluation, which depends on several factors and involves varied responsibilities, including:
The availability of high quality and reliable registered vaccines that meet WOAH international standards and remain effective against circulating strains. Vaccine composition must be under constant review to respond to changing circumstances and epidemiology.
Bird flu is surging again on poultry farms. The US is normalizing the cruelest mass killing method to stop it.
We failed to prepare, and now animals are paying the price.
“Failure to prepare is not a justification for using a less humane method,” a source who has worked in the livestock industry for decades and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the professional repercussions of criticizing industry practices told me. Peer countries like Canada and those in the EU, the source pointed out, are doing fine in their bird flu response without resorting to mass ventilation shutdown
Bird flu confirmed in Meeker County turkey flock of 140K
Bird flu was confirmed Wednesday in a flock of 140,000 turkeys in central Minnesota, officials said.
Unfortunately, HPAI seems to keep popping up during the seasonal migrations in Minnesota
Live bird farms ordered to euthanize healthy flocks due to potential spread of Avian Flu
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – Despite efforts to control the Avian Flu, cases are growing in the United States and Pennsylvania. On Friday, the rapid increase in infections prompted the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture to order all 12 of its bird farms to euthanize or sell its healthy birds. Even though the flocks have tested negative […]
Despite efforts to control the Avian Flu, cases are growing in the United States and Pennsylvania. On Friday, the rapid increase in infections prompted the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture to order all 12 of its bird farms to euthanize or sell its healthy birds.
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The impact of the decision by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture remains to be seen, but it comes at a time when egg prices are at a record high.
Bird flu causing egg prices to soar nationally, USDA says
https://www.actionnews5.com/2023/01/13/bird-flu-causing-egg-prices-soar-nationally-usda-says/
“Over time, as more and more birds are euthanized, it’s not like they can turn right around and have new birds ready to go right off the door. It takes time to rebuild that stock back up,” Hicks said.
US bird flu outbreak: millions of birds culled in ‘most inhumane way available’
The US poultry industry has increasingly switched to “the most inhumane method available” to cull tens of millions of birds during the latest outbreak of avian influenza, according to government data.
Outbreaks of the disease, also known as bird flu, have wreaked havoc across Europe and the US this year, with 38 million birds killed in the US so far.
Amid Bird Flu Outbreak, Meat Producers Seek “Ventilation Shutdown” for Mass Chicken Killing’
https://theintercept.com/2022/04/14/killing-chickens-bird-flu-vsd/
Now, another strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, is tearing through the country. More than 27 million chickens, turkeys, and other birds have been killed or scheduled to be killed — or “depopulated,” in meat industry jargon — since February. Many of these animals were killed with ventilation shutdown plus. In Iowa, the nation’s top egg-producing state, 5.3 million hens at a Rembrandt Enterprises egg factory farm were exterminated with VSD+ last month, the Storm Lake Times reported.