"New infections in animals should heighten concern of human H5N1."
"With egg prices spiking due to bird flu, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced steps last week to control the H5N1 virus, such as increasing financial relief for farmers with affected flocks and exploring vaccines and therapeutics for chickens. While these steps might help stabilize the egg supply in the short term, they’re insufficient for one simple reason: Chickens are not the only animals affected by this disease.
Three other species — cows, cats and rats — show why the Trump administration needs a more comprehensive strategy to protect the public.
Let’s start with cows, which have already been battling H5N1 for about a year. Nearly 980 dairy herds in 17 states have been affected. Stacey Schultz-Cherry, an influenza expert at St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, told me scientists were “quite shocked” when the spillover first happened from birds to cows. Many thought it would be a one-off event, with subsequent transmissions of that strain of bird flu, called B3.13, happening between cows themselves."
Dr. Leana S. Wen writes in a reported opinion column for the Washington Post March 4, 2025.
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