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WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitt Romney said he is "alarmed" by the spread of the bird flu virus and on Thursday called on federal agencies to move quickly to contain the outbreak that has impacted dairy cows across the states.
The Utah Republican and member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee penned a letter to the leaders of several agencies tasked with protecting the health of residents and animals — the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — asking them to address "critical" unanswered questions about the current outbreak of the disease.
"I am alarmed by reports about the rapid spread of the bird flu virus (H5N1), and concerned that your agencies are not moving quickly enough to understand and contain the outbreak," Romney wrote. "It is critical that you work swiftly to get ahead of this emerging situation and reassure the American public that they — and our food supply — remain safe. Given your agencies' recent experience with the COVID-19 pandemic and baby formula shortage, I am concerned that once again our federal government and its interagency process appears to be caught flat-footed."
The bird flu virus is widespread in wild birds with sporadic outbreaks among poultry flocks and ongoing outbreaks in dairy cattle in multiple states, according to the CDC. One person has been infected with the virus in 2024, after being exposed to infected dairy cows in Texas, but some epidemiologists think there could be more undetected cases in humans, according to NPR.
Utah's Department of Agriculture and Food in March implemented restrictions on dairy cattle in the state in an attempt to prevent the disease from spreading to the state. That order has technically expired, but the USDA last week issued a federal order that does practically the same thing by mandating the testing of cattle before they can be moved across state lines.
If a herd of lactating cattle tests positive for the virus, the herd cannot be moved for at least 30 days and must have a negative test before being moved, according to a fact sheet from the Utah department.
Romney asked the agency heads to address several "existing gaps in our public health knowledge," and asked about specific steps they're taking to contain the outbreak, their confidence that the commercial milk and beef supply is safe for consumption, and if researchers are looking into the likelihood that the bird flu could adapt to allow human-to-human transmission.
The senator requested a response from all three agencies by May 10.
The CDC advises that it is safe to eat properly cooked poultry and beef in the U.S., and adds that people should not drink unpasteurized milk or eat products made with unpasteurized milk. It also warns people to avoid contact with wild birds and unprotected exposure to infected or dead animals.
