If taking charge of your health is among your New Year’s resolutions, you might consider getting your 2024–25 seasonal influenza shot if you haven’t already. While it won’t protect you from H5N1 bird flu per se, immunization could play a pivotal part in warding off a bird flu pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The current avian influenza outbreak led to the infection of 66 people in 10 states in 2024, CDC records show. Most cases, 36, were in California and tied to dairy cattle exposure. Washington and Colorado reported 11 and 10 human infections, respectively, primarily linked to poultry farms. One person has died, the Louisiana Department of Health confirmed Jan. 6. The deceased, an adult over 65 with underlying medical conditions who had been hospitalized after exposure to wild birds and a non-commercial backyard flock, remained the sole H5N1 case in the state.
