Bird Flu Case in Washington State

A new strain of bird flu has infected a person in Washington state, leading to hospitalization, health officials say.

The Washington State Department of Health announced that an older resident was hospitalized in early November with flu-like symptoms.As of November 19, the person is still in the hospital. They have other health problems and raise chickens that were near wild birds.

This is the first case of a person infected with influenza A H5, a type of bird flu, in the state. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the risk to the public is low. The health department hasn’t found any other cases linked to this one.

The case is in Grays Harbor County, west of Seattle.It’s part of a larger spread of bird flu across the country. Since March 2024, the virus has infected over 1,000 herds of dairy cattle in 17 states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.