The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is collectively investing $10 million in the federal response to avian influenza among livestock workers, with the agency saying the risk to the general public remains low.
During a conference call Tuesday, health officials said nine cases of bird flu have been confirmed in Colorado so far, with three detected last week. Symptoms were described as mild, with pink eye being the main one.
Nirav Shah, principal deputy director of the CDC, said his agency is investing $5 million so that “partner organizations can focus on outreach and education efforts for farmworker health and safety.”
The majority of this investment – $4 million – will go to the nonprofit National Center For Farmworker Health. The group will provide training and information about the H5N1 virus to community organizations in affected states and help increase access to testing, which has late in the months since the first human cases were detected this year.
Another $5 million will be invested in seasonal flu vaccines for livestock workers during this year’s respiratory viral season. The agency aims to prevent possible co-infections of the influenza virus and avian flu, and also “reduce the risk of new versions of the influenza A virus emerging,” according to Shah.
The annual flu vaccine that many people get, and which will be provided to farmworkers through this CDC investment, does not provide cross-protection against H5N1. States affected by bird flu will develop their own vaccination plans with funding and help from the CDC.
A senior administration official noted that there are about 200,000 livestock workers in the US. Given that national flu vaccination is about 47 percent, they said they would like the immunization rate among farm workers to be higher than that.
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