Bird Flu Crisis Deepens Amid Rising Cases and Federal Response Challenges
As bird flu spreads to new species and becomes endemic in cattle, federal response efforts face setbacks.
Since last spring, the H5N1 bird flu—also known as avian influenza—has been spreading across the United States, causing outbreaks among both animals and humans. Initially detected in wild birds, the virus has become endemic in cattle and has devastated poultry flocks nationwide, driving up egg prices.
So far, 70 human cases have been confirmed, with the first U.S. death reported in Louisiana in January. The outbreak comes amid controversial changes in the federal government during President Donald Trump’s second term. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) fired key staff working on the bird flu response, and efforts to rehire them have faced administrative hurdles.
Concerns have grown further after bird flu was recently detected in rats in California, raising questions about transmission risks to humans and pets.
The Growing Impact on Agriculture and Economy
Chicken flocks have been devastated by the outbreak. In December 2024 alone, 18 million chickens were killed due to the virus. A report from Scientific American noted that more than 23 million chickens died in January. Ohio has been the most affected state, with 51 flocks impacted in the past month.
Egg prices have doubled since the outbreak began. A December report found that egg production fell 4.5% compared to the same period the previous year.
“Based on the number of birds we have lost in the last few months and the hen population, there just isn’t enough production to support the demand,” said Karyn Rispoli, managing director at price-tracking firm Expana, in an interview with The Guardian.
“We’re at a point now where we’re truly in a shortage.”
The average price of a dozen Grade A eggs in the U.S. rose to $4.95 in January, surpassing the previous record of $4.82 and more than doubling the August 2023 low of $2.04.
President Donald Trump acknowledged the outbreak on Friday, stating that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins would take action on rising prices while blaming the former Biden administration.
“She’s going to do something with the eggs,” Trump said.
“We inherited all the problems.”
Rollins later told Fox News that she and the Trump administration were considering “every possible scenario” to address the outbreak.
“We are looking at every possible scenario to ensure that we are doing everything we can in a safe, secure manner but also to ensure that Americans have the food that they need,” Rollins said.
Amid the egg shortage, more people have begun raising their own chickens, with many hatcheries selling out within hours.
“Not only do I sell my chicken eggs, but I sell my duck eggs, and I can't even keep up with that either,” said Stephanie Hall, a South Carolina resident, in a report.
As of now, more than 134 flocks nationwide have tested positive for bird flu, affecting 19 million chickens.
Bird Flu Becoming Endemic in Cattle
Cows have also been affected by the bird flu outbreak, raising concerns as new variants continue to emerge.
“It’s endemic in cows now. There is no way this is going to get contained on its own,” said Seema Lakdawala, an influenza virologist at Emory University, in an interview.
Studies from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have shown that the same variant causing serious illness in humans was detected in cows in Nevada on Feb. 5. Before this, a different variant—known as B3.13—had been spreading among dairy cattle nationwide, with nearly 1,000 herds across 16 states testing positive, according to Science News.
“It shows that even if you get rid of one virus that’s established itself, another one can pop up like whack-a-mole,” said Michael Worobey, a biologist at the University of Arizona, in a report by NPR.
In response, many states have begun testing their cattle’s milk for the virus after the USDA established a voluntary milk testing program. The new variant in Nevada was discovered through this initiative.
“Every farm in the state will be tested once a month,” said local farmer Dan Glessing to CBS Minnesota.
“If you do test positive, you are quarantined for 30 days. You have to have three consecutive negative tests to lift that quarantine.”
However, some states—including Wisconsin, Idaho, and Texas, where the first case of bird flu in cattle was detected—have opted out of the testing program despite being among the nation’s top five milk-producing states.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller told NBC News that requiring milk testing for bird flu would mean “just more regulation, more cost, more oversight” and that it’s “not necessary.”
“It’s not a big deal, if you measure by how many herds are affected,” Miller said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), pasteurization remains the most effective method for killing the virus in milk, though many workers have contracted the virus through raw milk and infected cattle.
Human Cases and Public Health Concerns
The first human case in the current outbreak was a dairy worker in Texas who tested positive for the virus in April 2024. Since then, there have been 70 confirmed cases of bird flu in humans, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data. More than 41 of those cases were linked to exposure from infected cows, while 24 were associated with poultry farms and culling operations—killing infected animals to prevent the spread. The sources of the remaining cases are unknown.
The first, and so far only, human death from bird flu was reported in Louisiana in January. The unidentified individual was initially hospitalized in December after being exposed to infected and dead birds in his backyard. This follows reports of hospitalizations in Missouri, Wyoming, and British Columbia. Despite growing concerns, the CDC has maintained that the risk to public health remains low.
“This case does not change CDC’s overall assessment of the immediate risk to the public’s health from H5N1 bird flu, which remains low,” the CDC said in a statement.
The Louisiana patient was infected with the D1.1 strain of bird flu—a strain circulating in wild birds and poultry. It is not related to the B3.13 strain detected in cows.
A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) examined the first 46 human cases of H5N1 detected over the past year. All but one were mild, and all except one were linked to exposure to infected animals.
“We have to put H5N1 deaths in perspective. This has been a horrible disease for well over 27 years in humans,” said Michael Osterholm, chair of public health and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, in an interview with Scientific American.
“The virus activity we’re seeing now, in terms of cases, has been largely a very mild illness. And while there have been two severe cases, both of these individuals also had underlying health conditions that would predispose them to severe disease.”
Since 2003, there have been 900 confirmed bird flu infections in humans. A World Health Organization (WHO) report found that half of those with serious infections died, giving the virus a 50% fatality rate in severe cases.
Federal Response Hurdles
A previous Introspective report highlighted how the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inadvertently fired employees working on the federal bird flu response due to President Trump’s objective of reducing the federal workforce. While the USDA has been working to rehire those terminated, many affected labs—such as the USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network, which manages data for animal disease outbreaks—have experienced slower response times to the bird flu outbreak since the layoffs.
“They’re the front line of surveillance for the entire outbreak,” said Keith Poulsen, director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, in an interview with Politico.
“They’re already underwater and constantly short-staffed, so if you take all the probationary staff out, you take out the capacity to do the work.”
The USDA’s response to other diseases, such as African swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease, was also affected by the layoffs.
Following the cuts, workers at the University of California, Davis’ California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System—the only lab in California authorized to test and confirm high-risk cases—announced they would go on strike Monday. This follows a staff exodus over the past year due to poor management and a lack of career advancement.
Before the announcement of the three-day strike, set to begin on Feb. 26, the lab had faced “unprecedented” demand for bird flu testing.
“Management has made it clear that they prioritize getting results out fast because we have such a high sample load over ensuring that our results are accurate and pass our quality control program,” said Alyssa Laxamana, a worker at the lab, in a report by The Washington Post.
“That has been really tough.”
The federal response to the bird flu has also caused confusion for state officials, as Trump’s policies have been interpreted differently.
“Just this week, the new administration said we may be looking at, you know, not depopulating birds, so we’re trying to understand what that would mean,” said Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen in a report by the Star Tribune.
“This is kind of a day-to-day piece.”
In the same report, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said mass layoffs under the Trump administration added “chaos” to an already high-stress situation that required a “clear path forward.”
Bird Flu Confirmed in Rats: A New Development
The bird flu outbreak has now been detected in black rats—common in urban areas—adding to the list of animals affected by the H5N1 virus. Rats present another potential exposure risk to humans and pets through waste such as saliva, urine, and blood.
The infected rats were found in Riverside County, California, according to The Los Angeles Times. They were living in an area where two infected chicken farms had been identified. This discovery follows a U.S. Department of Agriculture update confirming other infected animals, including a harbor seal in Massachusetts, a fox in North Dakota, and a cat in Oregon.