The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has admitted it accidentally fired ‘several’ agency employees working on the federal government’s response to the recent bird flu outbreak.
The H5N1 avian flu outbreak has decimated commercial and wild poultry flocks across the US over the last few months.
As a result, egg prices have skyrocketed, with The Economic Times reporting that a dozen is now being sold for as much as $10 in some grocery stores.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have so far confirmed 68 cases of bird flu among humans in the country, including a woman in Wyoming who has since been hospitalised.
Meanwhile, the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) has reported 36 new infected cattle herds in the last 30 states, bringing the outbreak to 972 cattle herds in 17 states.
The USDA is continuing to tackle the outbreak, with several agencies within the Agriculture Department playing a primary role in the response.
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This includes the Agricultural Research Service, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the National Animal Health Laboratory Network.
Some staff at the latter - which Politico states plays a major role in responding to animal disease outbreaks - have reportedly been terminated from their roles by mistake.
Keith Poulsen, who is the director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, said that three employees at USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network had been let go.
He also remarked it was ‘creating a lot of problems’ for the team.
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In response to the firings - which are the latest from President Donald Trump’s administration - a USDA spokesperson has said it’s working ‘swiftly’ to rehire those affected by the layoffs.
"Although several positions supporting [bird flu efforts] were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters," they told NBC News.
"USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service frontline positions are considered public safety positions, and we are continuing to hire the workforce necessary to ensure the safety and adequate supply of food to fulfill our statutory mission.”
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Last weekend, Reuters reported that the Trump administration had terminated 1,165 employees at the National Institutes of Health and that some cuts had taken place at the Food and Drug Administration as well.
Regarding the layoffs - spearheaded by Elon Musk and the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) - Don Bacon, a Republican Representative from Nebraska, has warned that more caution needs to be executed.
“There’s an old saying, ‘Measure twice, cut once,” he said.
“Well, they are measuring once and having to cut twice. Some of this stuff they’re going to have to return back. I just wish they’d make a better decision up front.”
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UNILAD has contacted the United States Department of Agriculture for further comment.
Topics: Health, US News, Politics, Donald Trump
Ella Scott