Lack of Bird Flu Tests Could Hide Pandemic Warning Signs

image via New Scientist

June 12, 2024, 7:30 PM

• •The FDA has authorized just one type of avian flu test, and it is only available to livestock workers.
• •State and federal authorities have detected bird flu in dairy cattle in 12 states.
• •The CDC has asked farmworkers with flu symptoms to get tested, but researchers are concerned about a lack of outreach and incentives to encourage testing among people with limited job security and access to health care.

Scientists are concerned that the US is not doing enough to prepare for a potential bird flu pandemic. The H5N1 bird flu virus has been detected in dairy cattle in 12 states, and three people who work on separate dairy farms have tested positive. However, the CDC has only tested about 40 people for the disease, and many diagnostic laboratories are not authorized to run tests for the virus. Researchers are urging the government to ramp up testing and invest in new ways to track the virus.

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