Avian Flu Preemption: My Tax Dollars at Work

If the big epidemic hits, we'll be safe in Wisconsin. Probably.

Wis. Assembly Speaker John Gard is putting together a bi-partisan task force to help Badgers be prepared in case of an Avian flu outbreak, which has been estimated to have the ability to kill hundreds of thousands globally. From Gard's press release today:

“Wisconsin’s experiences with Chronic Wasting Disease and the West Nile Virus may be helpful in being prepared for the Avian Bird Flu,” Gard said, “This disease has the potential to severely impact all of us including farmers and hunters. We want to ensure that we have a multi-faceted approach to prevention and preparedness.”

The Avian Influenza virus is responsible for the death of millions of birds and about 60 people across Asia. While the disease is extremely rare in humans, medical experts worry that the virus may mutate and spread person-to-person. Gard said the findings of the task force will better prepare Wisconsin in preventing a potential outbreak of the Avian Bird flu.

“We need to look at all of our options from prevention to containment,” Gard said, “We certainly don’t want to look back in a couple years and wish we had done more in regard to Avian Bird Flu.”

They'll have to move at the rate of science, not politics, if they want to accomplish these goals, however.

The plus side is that they have the resources at UW Madison to make some progress, and many solutions may be considered in prior research that - if the Assembly taps into Madison brains - can be implemented fairly quickly.

CP @ GMC.