Today we’re talking about bird flu. It’s infecting flocks of chickens, causing egg prices to rise across the country, plus herds of dairy cattle and people are getting sick too. And all of this is happening amid sweeping changes at U.S. federal health agencies. The Trump administration has ordered mass firings and limits on public communications at agencies including the Centers for Disease Control, hindering its ability to keep the public informed. On the show today, Jessica Malaty Rivera, an epidemiologist and science communicator explains the scale of the current bird flu outbreak, how the response in the United States has been disrupted by chaos in the federal government, and why state health systems may struggle to fill the gaps after years of underfunding.
Plus, for one listener, doing something is better than nothing. And, another listener shares how they changed their mind about the value of government work.
Here’s everything we talked about today:
What’s something you thought you knew but later found out you were wrong about? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.