Public health officials try to curb bird flu in U.S. dairy heartlandExBulletin

Aisha Lascaux, host:

This week, the USDA will expand testing of milk supplies for avian influenza. The virus has devastated poultry and cattle herds, and 60 human cases have been reported in the United States, according to the CDC. More than half of them are in California. And while the virus does not appear to be spreading from person to person, health officials are concerned that it could evolve. KVPR's Kelly Klein shares insights from a dairy county in California.

KELLY KLEIN, BYLINE: It's a foggy afternoon in Tulare, central California. In the parking lot, county staff are handing out gloves, face shields and N95 masks.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Well, I'll bring some N95s too.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Oh, N95?

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Mask, yes.

Klein: Local two-county residents can participate.

(sound of door closing)

KLEIN: They load the safety equipment, known as PPE, into the truck bed into the vehicle. Don Turner works for the Tulare County Public Health Department.

Don Turner: All right.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Thank you very much.

Turner: You're welcome.

(sound of door closing)

KLEIN: This is the agency's ninth free PPE distribution. Sean Roberts is one of the organizers.

Sean Roberts: In two hours, we distributed 37,000 pieces of PPE.

Klein: This, along with dairy worker and milk testing, is one of the ways counties and states are working together to contain avian influenza. Although there are questions about how exactly humans get infected with the virus, health officials believe the virus can be carried in milk from infected cows and can be transmitted to dairy workers during the milking process. states that it is possible.

Roberts: People who work in direct contact with cattle, whether they are infected or at high risk of becoming infected if cattle are infected, can minimize human exposure by wearing PPE. The idea is that it can be suppressed to

Klein: California has more reports of avian influenza in humans and dairy herds than any other state in the U.S., and the majority of the state's human cases occur right here in Tulare County. It is the nation's number one dairy production area. Hear it from Juan Delezma. He is a farm worker at a nearby dairy farm.

Juan Delezma: (Speaks a language other than English).

Klein: “If there are no cows, there are no jobs,” he says. The water tower here was also made to look like a milk glass. Avian influenza was detected in cattle in California in late August. Derezma says he has seen cows get sick.

Derezma: (Spoken in a language other than English).

Klein: “Some of them looked like sleepwalkers,” he says. They looked hurt, so he and his colleagues feared they would die. Cattle died, but the state declined to estimate how many. As for her own health, Derezma says she's not too worried. He received PPE from his employer. But farmworker advocacy groups say that's not everyone's experience. Elizabeth Strater of the United Farm Workers Union said many people are unaware of the risks of the virus and don't have the necessary personal protective equipment. Also…

ELIZABETH STRETER: We've heard from farmworkers, community members and veterinarians that there are obviously symptomatic workers still working.

Klein: One reason is that public health officials advise people with the virus to isolate until their symptoms improve. This could take longer than the five days of paid sick leave that states typically require from employers. The California Department of Public Health said in an email that workers' compensation should cover more days off, but Strater said it has nothing to do with getting approved and that it's an incentive to get tested. said that it is hindering the

Tricia Stephen Bratler is an employee of the Tulare County Farm Bureau, which represents farmers. She also said farmworkers tend to keep their heads down.

Tricia Stephen Bratler: They don't want to lose their paycheck. They don't want to lose working hours. They don't want to get into trouble with their employer. And they certainly don't want the government to know details about their lives if they're here as undocumented workers.

KLEIN: State health officials acknowledge the number of cases may be an underestimate, especially because symptoms are relatively mild. Meanwhile, state, county and federal health officials said they are pushing for more testing of dairy workers. Spanish-language radio station PSA recently promoted a local testing clinic.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: (Speaking Spanish).

KLEIN: It was a pilot clip put together by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and it was the first of its kind in the nation. The CDC did not disclose the number of participants. Meanwhile, the virus continues to rage on California dairy farms, including Joey Airoso's fourth-generation farm in Tulare County. On the worst day of the outbreak on his farm, he says more than 500 cows required medical treatment.

Joey Iloso: I'm depressed. Yeah. From a moral point of view, it is hard to imagine that many animals feel bad.

KLEIN: They say 14 of them died. But none of his employees have gotten sick yet, and he attributes that to the personal protective equipment he's gotten for free. For NPR News, I'm Kelly Klein in Tulare.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

Copyright © 2024 NPR. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited. Visit our website terms of service and authority page of www.npr.org For more information.

NPR transcripts are produced by NPR contractors on short notice deadlines. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The reliable recording of NPR's programming is the audio recording.