H5N1 avian influenza, commonly known as “bird flu,” first emerged in 1996 and has been decimating wild birds in an ongoing epizootic since 2021. But the virus only recently gained national attention due to increasing infections in domestic chickens, dairy cattle and humans. As of this February, at least 70 Americans have fallen ill from H5N1 and one person has died from it, in addition to over 970 infected dairy herds and millions of dead birds.

Public health authorities have stated that the current risk to the public is low, but there is a growing threat of a new influenza pandemic if the virus mutates so it can spread easily between people. There is currently no evidence of human-to-human transmission of H5N1, but each human infection – caught from exposure to infected birds, cattle, or possibly even unpasteurized milk and raw pet food – increases the odds of such a mutation. And the virus shows no signs of going away, either in cattle or wildlife.

An H5N1 pandemic could be devastating – but it could also be mitigated. Many public health measures like vaccines became politicized during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, but infectious diseases know no party. To protect Americans and people across the world, politicians and health organizations must cooperate to monitor the spread of H5N1, develop and deploy vaccines for humans and animals alike, and strengthen our public health system.

The most obvious threat is that pandemic influenza could be much deadlier than the seasonal flu – like the 1918 “Great Influenza” that had an unusually high mortality rate among healthy young adults in addition to children and seniors. But even if H5N1 symptoms and severity turn out to be similar to the seasonal flu, the lack of prior immunity means that many, many people would get sick at once, potentially overwhelming healthcare systems and disrupting daily life.

Even “just the flu” is much more serious than many Americans and our politicians presume it is. The 2024-2025 flu season has been unusually severe, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reporting a preliminary estimate of 33 to 56 million illnesses, 430,000 to 910,000 hospitalizations, and 19,000 to 92,000 deaths from the flu between Oct. 1, 2024, and Feb. 15, 2025. The California Department of Public Health additionally reported that at least 934 Californians have died from the flu so far this season, including 15 children.

Because H5N1 is a subtype of influenza A and has been circulating among animals for many years, medical science has a better chance of mitigating it compared to unexpected novel viruses like COVID-19 – but only if appropriate measures are taken. Research into H5N1 vaccines is already underway, so policymakers should support these efforts, as well as facilitate collaboration between state, national and global health organizations and dedicate funding to public health programs.

Regrettably, the new federal administration has a pattern of hostility against medical science and public health. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the newly-confirmed head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the “Make America Healthy Again Commission,” is a longtime anti-vaccine activist and proponent of dangerous pseudoscience. Kennedy has even offered a regulatory job to Raw Farm CEO Mark McAfee, whose unpasteurized milk was recalled by the California Department of Public Health in December 2024 after testing positive for bird flu contamination.

The unpredictably evolving nature of the situation can cause anxiety, so although the current risk to the public is still low, experts have recommended several ways to protect yourself in the face of bird flu. These include:

• Avoid contact with sick or dead birds. If you have backyard poultry, take steps for biosecurity to keep your flock and yourself safe.
• Only consume pasteurized dairy products. Bird flu has been found to contaminate raw milk, but pasteurization inactivates or “kills” the virus and pasteurized milk is safe to drink.
• Avoid feeding raw meat or eggs to pets, and keep cats indoors to prevent contact with wild birds. Cats can become severely ill with H5N1 and potentially spread it to humans.
• Wash your hands frequently – a good strategy to prevent many kinds of illnesses.

Get a seasonal flu vaccine every year. This will not protect against H5N1 per se, but “might reduce the very rare risk of coinfection” that could lead to a pandemic, according to the CDC. Plus, it helps protect yourself and others from the toll of seasonal flu.