CDC Winds Down Emergency Response as Bird Flu Wanes in the U.S.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has wound down its emergency response to bird flu in the United States after a marked decline in animal infections and no new human cases reported since February 2025. CDC officials stated on July 7 that ongoing bird flu updates will now be integrated into routine influenza surveillance and reported monthly rather than weekly. This shift comes after 70 confirmed human infections with the H5N1 strain—mostly among farmworkers—and one reported fatality in Louisiana. The CDC emphasizes that while the current public health risk remains low, monitoring will continue and the agency is poised to respond rapidly to any significant developments, according to Axios and the CDC. The U.S. experienced severe impacts on the poultry industry, with nearly 175 million birds having died or been culled since the start of the outbreak in 2022, as reported by Science News. The recent months, however, have seen a notable decrease in both animal and human cases, prompting most affected states to either end or scale back their response efforts. A new development emerged in California, where a rare H5N9 strain of bird flu was detected for the first time in the U.S. at a duck farm. State officials quickly quarantined the site and culled 119,000 birds last December. Importantly, H5N9 is considered to pose little risk to humans, and no human infections have been linked to this strain in the U.S. to date. Health experts remain vigilant, increasing surveillance and biosecurity at farms to prevent further spread, according to Passport Health. Globally, the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza continues to circulate among wild birds and pose ongoing challenges in parts of Asia and Europe, but no major international outbreaks have been reported in the past day. Scientists worldwide continue to monitor for changes in the virus that might increase its risk to people, particularly as H5N1 evolves and spreads in diverse animal populations. While vaccines for the H5 strains are approved in the U.S., none have been deployed during the most recent outbreaks. The USDA is continuing to track and publish animal detection data, while the CDC will focus on reporting any future human cases as they arise. Thank you for tuning in to this week’s Bird Flu Update. Come back next week for more. This has been a Quiet Please production. For more, check out Quiet Please Dot A I. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta