CDC Removes Bird Flu Data After Brief Online Posting

Scientists are urging the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to release information regarding the risks associated with bird flu to humans and pets. This call to action follows the CDC's brief publication of a data table that was subsequently taken down shortly after its release.

The data was included in a report primarily focused on air quality issues related to California wildfires and was notably absent from an embargoed version of the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) that was made available to the media the day prior. This situation has raised concerns, particularly in light of a recent directive from former President Donald Trump that mandated a halt to public communications from the CDC.

A copy of the now-deleted data table, obtained by a major news outlet, indicated that a domestic cat infected with the H5N1 virus may have transmitted it to another cat and a human residing in the same household. In another documented case, a cat fell ill and subsequently died just one day after a dairy worker displayed symptoms of the virus.

Experts have expressed significant concern over the CDC's decision to remove this information from public access. They argue that withholding such data undermines the agency's responsibility to safeguard public health. One prominent figure in the field has called for the immediate publication of the complete data set, along with the contextual information surrounding its collection, to facilitate scientific scrutiny and review.

As of now, the CDC has confirmed a total of 67 human cases of H5N1 infection in the United States, with one reported fatality in Louisiana. The virus has not demonstrated a propensity for widespread human-to-human transmission; however, it has shown a troubling capacity to infect domestic cats, with reports indicating that at least 85 cats have been infected since 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Up until this recent report, there had been no documented instances of cats transmitting the virus to humans. However, a rise in cases among domestic cats has been observed, particularly since the virus began circulating through dairy farms. Some recent infections have been linked to the consumption of contaminated raw pet food or raw milk.

Veterinary experts stress the importance of understanding the potential risks posed by H5N1, especially considering the significant number of domestic cats in the U.S. and their close interactions with humans. The evolving nature of the virus, which has historically affected primarily avian species, now poses risks to a wider array of mammals, including livestock and marine animals, highlighting the potential for mutations that could increase the virus's threat to human health.

Following Trump's inauguration, federal health agencies were instructed to suspend public communications indefinitely. This directive has not only impacted the CDC but has also affected other health organizations, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health. The CDC's website currently states that it is undergoing modifications to comply with the executive orders issued by the former president.