WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack in response to the recent outbreak of avian flu. 

In the letter, the senators urge the USDA, Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other necessary agencies to continue to provide the public and state agencies with coordinated, up-to-date, and accurate information on the spread of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), also known as H5N1, particularly around the safety of the U.S. commercial milk or meat supply, and the risk to farmworker health.

“The spread of the strain to livestock, including goats and cattle, and a farmworker in Texas, underscores the urgency required to confront this outbreak through a collaborative federal response, heightened surveillance, and additional resources to support vaccine research,” the senators wrote. 

“As the wild bird migration continues this spring, we stand ready to work with you and department staff to contain and stop this outbreak and minimize harm to rural America,” the senators concluded. 

Read the full letter HERE.

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