“Experts worry that public health turmoil could make bird flu deadlier”
By Paul Sisson
“This, argued virologist Angela Rasmussen, is not the moment for any sort of friction in the flow of information between government agencies and the private sector, which will need to collaborate quickly to deploy medical stockpiles, isolate the new strain and begin working on an updated vaccine.
How are we going to find out if H5N1 has acquired the ability to be efficiently transmitted? How are we going to find that primary cluster of human cases and be able to contain it before it spreads outward to the point that it’s not containable?” Rasmussen said.””
to read the full article go to
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/03/02/experts-worry-that-public-health-turmoil-could-make-bird-flu-deadlier/
“To the Pandemic Czar: Are We Prepared to Talk About Bird Flu?”
by Sara Gorman
“Rather than just passively watching and worrying opens in a new tab or window, we need to be ready now with trustworthy communication. H5N1 is already affecting Americans, from farm workers opens in a new tab or window directly exposed to the virus to consumers facing higher prices opens in a new tab or window at the grocery store. When Waffle House added a 50-cent-per-egg surcharge opens in a new tab or window, it brought the economic reality of bird flu home to millions. As the virus continues to mutate, governments and scientists are rightly racing to develop vaccines opens in a new tab or window.
Just as importantly, we need innovative and consistent communication strategies to ensure we are ahead of inevitable vaccine hesitancy — and to ensure vaccines become vaccinations. Not even the most effective vaccines can protect us if people are unwilling or unable to get vaccinated. We need high-quality communications that directly address the likely realities of bird flu vaccines alongside other preventative, diagnostic, and curative measures.”
to read the full article go to
https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/second-opinions/114445
“Sacramento doctor: Not every child will beat the odds if we don’t take bird flu seriously | Opinion”
By Jeremy Sanchez
“For staff, it was another, typical winter day in the hospital: Child after child was coming into the emergency room with a cough, congestion or runny nose. Most had a viral upper respiratory infection and are sent home on supportive care. But one girl, 10-years-old, stood out. She didn’t get the influenza vaccine this year and caught the seasonal flu. She had underlying asthma and was struggling to breathe. As a pediatrician, I explained to her worried parents that their daughter needed continuous airway pressure because her Albuterol treatment was not opening her airways fast enough. Unfortunately, even these interventions didn’t work, and the girl was intubated, an oxygen tube inserted down her throat, which is especially dangerous for someone with asthma.”
to read the full article go to
https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/article301153584.html
“Michael Osterholm on avian influenza and the risk to people”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxiDvSVtwks