Ranking Member Cassidy Requests Additional Briefings on Ongoing Avian Flu Outbreak Threatening Livestock, Human Population

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, requested continued briefings from the Biden administration on the ongoing outbreak of H5N1, an avian influenza, among wild animals and livestock in the United States and abroad.

First identified in 1996, avian influenza has triggered multiple outbreaks globally among animals and humans. The current outbreak since 2021 has led to the deaths of hundreds of millions of domestic and wild birds worldwide and continues to spread to new mammal species. As of March 2024, avian influenza had been identified in at least 48 mammal species in 26 countries.

Spread of the virus among mammals increases risks that the virus could more easily infect humans. Earlier this month, a dairy worker in Texas tested positive for avian influenza, the first American to contract this illness in the current outbreak. Cassidy raised additional concerns that avian influenza could have severe impacts on our nation's food supply, and called on the Biden administration to continue to ensure all food on the market is safe for Americans.

"It is essential for federal agencies to remain vigilant in ensuring food safety practices continue to be monitored and reviewed as needed to prevent any unsafe products from entering the market," wrote Dr. Cassidy. "As the Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, I request continued briefings on epidemiological updates on H5N1 in both animal and human populations, interagency coordination, guidance and technical assistance you are providing to state and local agricultural and public health agencies, and ongoing efforts to disseminate information to stakeholders."

Read the full letter here or below.

Secretary Becerra and Secretary Vilsack:

I write to express my concern with the ongoing outbreak of H5N1, a highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), and request regular, transparent updates on interagency efforts to address this evolving health security threat.

H5N1 was first identified in 1996 in southern China, and has since triggered multiple outbreaks globally that have, in some instances, spilled over into humans. The current outbreak has led to the deaths of hundreds of millions of domestic and wild birds worldwide since 2021 and continues to spread to new mammal species. As of March, H5N1 had been identified in at least 48 mammal species in 26 countries.^[1]

While infections in mammals typically occur through contact with infected birds, the current outbreaks within U.S. livestock appear to be spreading between the mammals, without new exposures to infected birds. Genetic sequencing of the confirmed human case has also revealed the presence of a mutation that can impact the virus' ability to adapt to mammalian hosts.^[2] As you know, widespread transmission of the virus among mammalian hosts significantly increases the risk that the virus could evolve to become well adapted to transmission among humans. While human infections are currently rare, the reported human cases since 1997 document a 50% case fatality rate.^[3] It is essential for federal agencies to remain vigilant in ensuring food safety practices continue to be monitored and reviewed as needed to prevent any unsafe products from entering the market.

As the Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, I request continued briefings on epidemiological updates on H5N1 in both animal and human populations, interagency coordination, guidance and technical assistance you are providing to state and local agricultural and public health agencies, and ongoing efforts to disseminate information to stakeholders. We appreciate your attention to this request and your continued engagement with the committees of jurisdiction.

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