On Wednesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency over H5N1, commonly known as “bird flu.”
The emergency came after an outbreak of the virus among dairy cows in Southern California, according to the governor’s website.
"This proclamation is a targeted action to ensure government agencies have the resources and flexibility they need to respond quickly to this outbreak," Governor Newsom said in a statement.
"Building on California’s testing and monitoring system — the largest in the nation — we are committed to further protecting public health, supporting our agriculture industry, and ensuring that Californians have access to accurate, up-to-date information," he added. "While the risk to the public remains low, we will continue to take all necessary steps to prevent the spread of this virus."
JUST IN - California Gov. Gavin Newsom declares state of emergency over H5N1 bird flu. pic.twitter.com/9vVn8HSvyC
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This week, the first case of severe bird flu was confirmed in a human patient in Louisiana.
According to Reuters, the resident is hospitalized in critical condition after suspected contact with an infected backyard flock. They are reported to have underlying medical conditions and are over the age of 65.
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) affirmed that bird flu still represents a low risk to the general public.
"The mild cases that we've seen in the United States largely reflect that many of the individuals are getting infected by dairy cows and that's very different than getting infected with infected birds," said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told Reuters.
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