NOTUS - Democrats Want HHS to ‘Double Down’ on Preventing the Spread of Bird Flu in Ag Workers

Democratic lawmakers on the House’s Oversight Committee are asking the Department of Health and Human Services for information about what it’s doing to prevent the spread of bird flu among agricultural workers, who are at highest risk of exposure. 

Rep. Jamie Raskin, the committee’s ranking member, and Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking member of the national security and border subcommittee, are asking HHS to “double down” on its efforts to engage with undocumented agricultural workers. It’s a demographic of workers who some Democratic lawmakers and public health experts have said will be less likely to seek testing and health care after bird flu exposure, given President-elect Donald Trump’s promises of mass deportation.

“We are deeply concerned that the present political environment, particularly rising anti-immigrant rhetoric, may exacerbate barriers to care and increase the threat to public health,” the lawmakers said in a letter sent to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra on Friday, first obtained by NOTUS. “These tensions present risks to vulnerable essential workers, to the agricultural supply chain, and to the general public.”

The letter also highlighted that some of the highest-risk workers are less likely to have access to testing, insurance and paid sick leave. HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

That the lawmakers are actively seeking more information on the response to the outbreak signals a more aggressive posture from Capitol Hill on stopping the spread of bird flu, which some lawmakers are concerned could lead to even more economic consequences as well as create a possible public health crisis.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday the outbreak has infected 58 people in the U.S. so far — almost all are agricultural workers who were exposed to sick livestock or poultry. Public health experts worry that without more proactive disease surveillance, the virus could mutate to become easily transmissible between people.

When NOTUS asked Garcia about the outbreak last month, he said, “We just don’t have a ton of information” and expressed concern about the incoming Trump administration’s ability to handle serious public health threats, especially if Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is confirmed as health secretary.

The lawmakers’ letter asks for additional information on the efforts of the department’s agencies to protect farmworkers from both workplace retaliation and deportation if they choose to get tested for the virus and asks what additional strategies health agencies could put in place. They also requested a staff-level briefing before the end of the month.

The CDC’s number of infections is likely undercounted. NOTUS reported earlier this month that agricultural worker advocates blame this on farmworkers’ fears of workplace retaliation and lost wages — and said that Trump’s threats of mass deportation are amplifying those fears. The lawmakers cited that reporting in their letter.

The Trump transition team did not respond to a request for comment.

The letter also asks what specific efforts HHS agencies are taking to communicate with agricultural workers and business owners about the outbreak. They argue Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric has weakened the current administration’s response efforts.

“The risks of undermining effective public health initiatives are too severe to ignore,” the letter states. “We urge the HHS to double down on its efforts to engage the communities at greatest risk of [avian influenza]” and other infections.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that California officials still have no idea how a child was infected with the bird flu, but the CDC determined the case was related to the strain that’s affected over 800 dairy herds across the U.S. Last week, the Department of Agriculture also ordered nationwide milk-supply testing for bird flu to help aid disease surveillance.

“Unmitigated spread of communicable disease because certain communities are unable to access quality healthcare can lead to unmitigated spread and affect us all,” the letter states. “A reluctance [from farmworkers] to seek help and treatment undermines federal efforts to manage diseases, leaving our food supply chain and overall public health at heightened risk.”