Human cases of Bird Flu confirmed in county

Risk to general public low

The Madera County Department of Public Health (MCDPH), in coordination with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have identified two cases of H5N1 bird flu (one confirmed case and one presumptive positive case) in individuals who had contact with infected dairy cattle. The individuals have mild symptoms, are being treated with antiviral medications, and are isolating at home.

“Although there are confirmed human cases of bird flu in Madera County, the risk to the general public remains low,” said Dr. Simon Paul, Madera County Public Health Officer.

The virus was first detected in California in sick dairy cattle in August, and public health officials have been closely monitoring workers for illness at dairy facilities experiencing an outbreak of bird flu among their cattle herds.