On July 2, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officially declared the end of its emergency response to H5N1 avian flu as a health threat to humans that was activated April 4, 2024.
On July 7, CDC streamlined H5N1 bird flu updates with routine influenza data updates and updated reporting cadences to reflect the current public health situation.
While there have been 70 total reported cases of avian influenza in human dairy and poultry workers, with two reported deaths, CDC said there have been no recent reported cases and the health risk is low.
On its website, CDC reports that H5 bird flu continues to be widespread in wild birds worldwide and is causing outbreaks in poultry and United States dairy cows. CDC officials said they are watching the situation and working with states to monitor people with animal exposures and using its flu surveillance systems to monitor for H5 bird flu activity in people.
CDC will no longer report infection rates in animals; those will be reported on the USDA website.
In May, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services canceled a $600 million contract awarded in January by President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration to Moderna for the late-stage development of its bird flu vaccine for humans.
The department cited concerns about its use of the mRna delivery platform, the same platform used to deliver some COVID vaccines. Three other contracts for avian flu vaccines using conventional platforms remain in place.
David Murray can be reached at [email protected].
