On Monday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that the risk of bird flu to the general public is still minimal, Reuters reported. The CDC requested state public health officials to be ready to take action if needed.
CDC advises local health officials to plan ahead for bird flu risk, calls for testing and treatment for potentially impacted farm workers
The CDC called for plans to swiftly test and offer treatment to farm workers who may be affected if there are positive cases among cattle herds. Additionally, it urged state health officials to openly communicate any difficulties they encounter.
Health authorities in various states have been instructed to get ready for additional instances of bird flu affecting humans due to concerns about the virus spreading to people.
On Friday, the CDC officials issued a cautionary message, urging state officials to ensure they have current operational strategies in case more individuals working on farms are diagnosed with H5N1, Dailymail reported.
During the meeting, they highlighted that the risk to the general public remained relatively low. However, they stressed the importance of health authorities being prepared for the possibility of more cases emerging.
Outbreaks of bird flu among dairy cows in several states, coupled with at least one case detected in a farmworker in Texas, have sparked concerns that the virus could pose the next infectious threat to humans.
Understanding H5N1 transmission and clarifying risks and precautions from federal officials
The H5N1 influenza virus is highly pathogenic, indicating its capacity to cause severe illness and fatalities, as reported by the NY Times. However, federal officials clarified that although its transmission among cows was unforeseen, humans can only contract the virus through close contact with infected animals, not from each other.
“It’s really about folks who are in environments where they may be interacting with cattle that are infected with this virus,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The risk for most everyone else is very low,” he added. “Right now, our risk assessment hasn’t changed, but if it does change, we’re going be pretty quick and pretty transparent about that.”
For years, the CDC and other agencies in the United States and around the world have closely monitored the evolution of H5N1. Federal entities have accumulated vaccines and medications in preparation for a potential bird flu outbreak.
Rick Bright, the chief executive of Bright Global Health, a consulting company dedicated to enhancing responses to public health crises, stated, “We are more prepared for an influenza pandemic than likely any other outbreak that could happen, with any other pathogen.”
