New Bird Flu Cases Spark Fear Around Potential Spread of the Disease

(AmericanProsperity.com) – In California, three more herds have tested positive for the Bird Flu in Central Valley and it’s been raising concerns about whether the extent of the disease is more widespread than originally thought.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced the newest cases, bringing the total number of California herds infected to eight this month. Many experts have spoken out about the fear around this, expressing concern that this disease may be more widespread than originally thought.

Associate professor Meghan Davis at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg school of public health said, “We are really not testing enough.”

Davis continued, “The lack of testing has actually been one of the most startling things for me, in terms of watching the response to this outbreak unfold.”

California is the fourteenth state to announce H5N1 cases in dairy cows since the outbreak was identified in March. Many states and localities have refused testing on both animals and people, which causes much more concern for experts looking at the potential spread of the disease.

In Colorado, there were nine cases among over one hundred workers who reported symptoms, but only a fraction of the workers were exposed to H5N1-positive chickens. There has been an astonishingly low amount of testing done on workers with confirmed exposures.

Eric Deeble, who works under marketing and regulatory programs at the USDA, says that they are doing things like bulk milk sampling at affected herds.

Referring to efforts like bulk milk testing, Davis said, “It’d be really great to see USDA step in with some very strong recommendations…”

U.S. Officials have tried pushing mandatory bulk milk sampling “since day one,” but they have not instituted them yet. Steve Grube, Chief Medical Officer for a branch under the FDA has said that testing everything “is a lot.” As of now, the USDA only requires H5N1 testing for lactating dairy cows that are moving across state lines, but many experts are pushing for more regulation.

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