"The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed a second case of New World screwworm in Zavala County on Friday, just hours after Gov. Greg Abbott expanded a statewide disaster declaration in response to the screwworm’s arrival in Texas."
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/06/05/screwworm-texas-greg-abbott-emergency/
@bich Agreed. Like a few things; only my contemporaries have seen this in practice...dog wounds, occasional human....I hope USAG will get a handle on it quickly....
I wonder why it exploded a few years ago? Probably something related to climate/environment? 🤔
@bich I suspect, complacency. So many programs occupy the attention of policy-makers, until they don't. I am reminded of the Smallpox scare...only three of us at my health department had been previously vaccinated. Only I had ever provided the vaccination to others....Other projects gain the current "crisis" appeal without the understanding of risk....In this case, international cooperation. I agree that climate could be a factor, it certainly has been with other vectors. As an example: there are aedes aegypti over-wintering in in the DC tunnels...
@MessengerFlats
We need to change how we fund public health so that local, state, and federal departments can have flexibility to respond to emerging diseases better.