Avian influenza is an extremely infectious and potentially fatal disease in poultry. In 2014 and 2016, two outbreaks of avian influenza led to the deaths of millions of poultry in 15 states and prompted emergency spending to control the disease. While the health risk to humans is low, humans have been infected with these viruses, sometimes fatally. A spike in fatal human infections in Asia began in late 2016. GAO was asked to review several issues related to avian influenza. This report examines (1) how outbreaks of avian influenza have affected human health, animal health, and the U.S. economy, (2) the extent to which USDA has taken actions to address any lessons learned from its responses to the outbreaks in 2014 and 2016, and how it plans to evaluate the actions' effectiveness, and (3) ongoing challenges and associated issues, if any, federal agencies face in their efforts to mitigate the potential harmful effects of avian influenza. GAO recommends that USDA develop a plan for evaluating the effectiveness of the corrective actions it has taken.
- | Author: U. S. Government Accountability Office
- | Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
- | Publication Date: Jul 11, 2017
- | Number of Pages: 60 pages
- | Language: English
- | Binding: Paperback
- | ISBN-10: 1548795984
- | ISBN-13: 9781548795986
