Public health experts warn not enough is being done to contain the spread of a bird flu virus in US dairy cows, raising the risk of the disease spilling over into people.
More than a month has passed since the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) first announced that dairy cattle in several US states had tested positive for a bird flu virus called H5N1, which has killed millions of birds and hundreds of mammals worldwide. The virus has since been detected in 鈥� and in one dairy worker in Texas, who had fully recovered. Yet this is only the tip of the iceberg.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 really have a great handle on the extent of the outbreak,鈥� says at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. That is because inadequate surveillance has left us in the dark about how far the virus has spread and how it is being transmitted, she says.
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The at the end of April that it would only require cows undergo testing if they are moving across state lines. Otherwise, it suggests farmers voluntarily test cows if they show signs of bird flu.
At issue is the fact that farmers have no incentive to do so, especially because they risk being stigmatised if their herd tests positive, says at the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) in Ohio.
This is in sharp contrast to protocols for H5N1 in poultry. Here, the USDA reimburses farmers for culling birds to prevent the disease from spreading. This encourages them to report an outbreak early and contain it quickly.
Other than covering the cost of testing for the virus, the USDA doesn鈥檛 reimburse dairy farmers in any capacity 鈥� not even for the cost of having a vet come out and collect samples, says Gingrich.
at the Kansas Department of Agriculture echoed these frustrations, noting that farmers must shoulder any production losses, including if their farm is shut down for investigation. The AABP has voiced these concerns to the USDA, but it is most likely that any increase in funding would require congressional approval, says Gingrich.
Beyond incentivising farmers to test sick cattle, the government could increase surveillance by testing samples from bulk milk tanks. These tanks pool raw milk from all the cattle on a farm. 鈥淚f we can test that bulk tank, we鈥檙e basically testing all the cows,鈥� says Gingrich. Right now, this can only be done with a dairy farmer鈥檚 consent.
The USDA didn鈥檛 respond to 快猫短视频鈥檚 questions about whether it will increase H5N1 surveillance efforts. Instead, a spokesperson said in an email that the 鈥淯SDA will continue to engage with producers, veterinarians, public health officials, agricultural officials and industry representatives to assess the best path forward鈥�.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 like doomsday scenarios, but this is the worst it has ever been for H5N1. This is when we all need to be very concerned because we have the potential of a lot of people getting exposed to [the virus], becoming sick and it adapting in humans,鈥� says Lakdawala. 鈥淚 would have expected, given what we know now, a stronger response.鈥�
