Report: U.S. Bird Flu Response Disrupted in Early Weeks of Trump Administration

According to a recent Reuters article, the Trump administration has disrupted the U.S. response to bird flu as the outbreak worsens, leading to confusion and concern among federal staff, state officials, veterinarians, and health experts.  Since President Donald Trump took office on January 20th, two federal agencies responsible for monitoring and responding to the epidemic have withheld bird flu reports and canceled congressional briefings and meetings with state health officials.  The CDC withheld two weekly reports, one on bird flu transmission and another on surveillance, and canceled several meetings on bird flu with state officials.  The CDC and the USDA held no congressional briefings for three weeks, and the USDA did not respond to a state official’s request for information on a new program to protect the nation’s food supply.

The result, article noted, has been anxiety among federal health staff that critical information about bird flu will not be disseminated in a timely manner or at all.

This comes as two cats from different households in Oregon's Multnomah County have died from apparent bird flu.  According to the Oregon Department of Agriculture, both cats got the virus from eating raw pet food made by Wild Coast Raw based in Olympia, WA.  The owners euthanized the cats.

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