The recent outbreak of avian flu in dairy cows is a “enormous concern,” as WHO top scientist Jeremy Farrar said last week.
Only two persons in the US have contracted this H5N1 strain of the avian flu (one last year and one this month), but a wider spread may be disastrous, as the sickness has killed one in two before.
Let's examine the facts before panicking. Health officials have a plan for bird flu pandemics.
The Department of Health and Human Services' assistant secretary for planning and response, Dawn O'Connell, told me the federal government is better prepared for pandemic influenza than covid-19.
First, masks, gowns, and goggles are easier to buy in commercial markets than before the coronavirus.
The Strategic National Stockpile has enough for agriculture, health-care systems, and other affected entities even if those supply chains are “pinched,” O'Connell said.
Tamiflu, which treats seasonal flu, is also in the stockpile and should help against H5N1.
Tamiflu, like covid antivirals, decreases the severity of influenza infections when taken early. Tamiflu can protect close contacts from getting sick, unlike covid therapies.
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