California Gov. Gavin Newsom Declares State of Emergency over Bird Flu

California Gov. Gavin Newsom Declares State of Emergency over Bird Flu

Americans throughout the nation can rejoice that President/President-elect Donald J. Trump tapped Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford physician and economist whose challenged the disastrous covid lockdown policies, to be the director of the National Institutes of Health.

Let’s hope Bhattacharya’s formal appointment processes goes smoothly and quickly, because California Gov. Gavin Newsom has “proactively” revving up a state response to the bird flu outbreak in California.

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency as the H5N1 bird flu virus moves from the Central valley to Southern California herds and federal officials confirmed flu in a Louisiana patient hospitalized with severe illness. This is the first case of severe illness caused by bird flu in the U.S., and is considered a concerning development as the virus continues to spread throughout the nation via migrating birds.

The declaration will allow for a more streamlined approach among state and local agencies to tackle the virus, providing “flexibility around staffing, contracting, and other rules to support California’s evolving response,” according to a statement issued Wednesday morning.

“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,” said Newsom in a statement. “While the risk to the public remains low, we will continue to take all necessary steps to prevent the spread of this virus.”

I noted that California had become the epicenter of the nation’s bird flu cases this fall. The bird flu (aka “H5N1 avian influenza” or highly pathogenic avian influenza virus) has been detected in 645 dairy farms across the state since late August, with about half of these cases emerging in the last month alone.

However, when it comes to humans, the real health risks remain low. In 34 cases that have been reported in this state so far, most cases have been mild, with symptoms including eye redness or discharge (conjunctivitis) and mild upper respiratory symptoms. There has been no person-to-person spread that has been detected. And all confirmed cases in California have been linked to occupational exposure, primarily among dairy farm workers.

The risk to the general public remains low, but individuals who interact with infected animals are at higher risk. The symptoms of infection in cattle include fever, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and a reduction in milk production. However, despite the unpleasant bout of illness, they animals recover.

In other words, the actual evidence suggests that an “emergency declaration” is unwarranted and unneeded for response to this outbreak.

Let’s review the severe case in Louisiana. Legal Insurrection readers are likely to be unsurprised that the patient is elderly and has pre-existing health conditions.

The patient is in critical condition with severe respiratory symptoms, according to Louisiana health officials. The person, who is over 65 and has underlying medical problems, had been in contact with sick and dead birds in a backyard flock, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Previous illnesses in the U.S. have been mild and the vast majority have been among farmworkers exposed to sick poultry or dairy cows.

Earlier in 2024, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis issued a disaster declaration specific to Weld County due to an outbreak there among poultry farms. The disaster declaration ended in September after 1.78 million chickens were culled.

If Newsom believes this was a smart move for relevancy beyond his current term in office, he is mistaken. Californians are not reacting well to this move, having been traumatized by the state’s covid policies.

Gavin Newsom is declaring a state of emergency in California due to bird flu cases.

I am not putting the mask back on. I am not closing down my business. We’re not doing this again. pic.twitter.com/RtmxNrZuL9

— Aaron Bergh (@realAaronBergh) December 18, 2024

No, we are not doing this again.

LOL. The state of the state of California is the definition of an emergency thanks to Newsom! Everything about it. Comical the bird flu is the issue he chooses to focus on when there’s a huge list of other more serious issues he conveniently overlooks! What a joke!

— Josh Davis (@JoshDav22972437) December 18, 2024

Newsom’s covid response wiped out the public’s trust in pandemic response. Let the farmers handle the outbreak.

🚨@GavinNewsom just issued an Emergency Declaration over bird flu, which has only infected 34 in CA & NEVER spread person to person here.

During COVID, he used this declaration to shut businesses/schools, issue mandates etc.

Who else doesn’t trust Newsom w/emergency powers? pic.twitter.com/jU6x5sRM1b

— Houman David Hemmati, MD, PhD (@houmanhemmati) December 18, 2024

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