H5 Bird Flu: Current Situation

What to know

  • H5 bird flu is widespread in wild birds worldwide and is causing outbreaks in poultry and U.S. dairy cows with several recent human cases in U.S. dairy and poultry workers.
  • While the current public health risk is low, CDC is watching the situation carefully and working with states to monitor people with animal exposures.
  • CDC is using its flu surveillance systems to monitor for H5 bird flu activity in people.
H5N1 Bird Flu How is it Spreading?

Current situation

H5N1 Bird Flu Human Cases in U.S.

On July 7, 2025, CDC streamlined H5N1 bird flu updates with routine influenza data updates and updated reporting cadences to reflect the current public health situation. As such, the following changes were made to this page:

  • Data on the number of people monitored and tested for bird flu are reported monthly.
  • USDA data on HPAI detections in animals will no longer be reported on the CDC website. These data can be found on USDA's website.
CDC will continue to report any additional human cases of H5 bird flu here and in FluView.

National situation summary

Person-to-person spread

None

There is no known person-to-person spread at this time.

Current public health risk

Low

The current public health risk is Low.

Cases in the U.S.

70 cases

Deaths in U.S.

1 death

Situation summary of confirmed and probable human cases since 2024

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When a case tests positive for H5 at a public health laboratory but testing at CDC is not able to confirm H5 infection, per Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) guidance, a case is reported as probable.

National flu surveillance (since February 25, 2024)

Note: National flu surveillance data will be updated on the first Friday of every month.

Specimens tested

201,714+ specimens tested that would have detected influenza A(H5) or other novel influenza viruses

Human cases

6 case detected through national flu surveillance

Targeted H5 surveillance (since March 24, 2024)

Note: Targeted H5 surveillance data will be updated on the first Friday of every month.

Total people monitored

18,600+ after exposure to infected animals

Total people tested

880+ after exposure to infected animals

Human cases

64 cases detected through targeted H5 surveillance

Detections in Animals

For data on HPAI detections in animals, visit the USDA website.

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