‘We are taking decisive action to safeguard the nation’s food supply from this emerging threat,’ the health secretary said.
The Food and Drug Administration is now able to authorize drugs to treat or prevent New World Screwworm infections in animals, under a declaration signed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Aug. 19.
The declaration gives the FDA the ability to issue emergency authorizations for the drugs against screwworm, a fly that has been infecting animals in Mexico in recent weeks. The parasite poses an emerging threat to livestock and food security, with “potential impacts on both national security and animal health,” according to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
“Today we are taking decisive action to safeguard the nation’s food supply from this emerging threat,” Kennedy said in a statement. “This authorization equips FDA to act quickly, limit the spread of New World Screwworm, and protect America’s livestock.”
HHS is the FDA’s parent agency. The FDA has not yet taken advantage of the new ability.
“Our priority is to safeguard both animal health and the nation’s food supply,” Dr. Marty Makary, the FDA’s commissioner, said in a statement. “FDA is acting swiftly and responsibly to help ensure we have the necessary tools to prevent and control New World Screwworm, minimizing risks to agriculture and public health.”
Cases of screwworm infection in Panama jumped from an average of about 25 in previous years to more than 6,500 in 2023.
Cases were then detected in a host of countries closer to the United States, including Guatemala and Mexico. Screwworm has not been reported in the United States as of yet.
Screwworm cases are typically in animals. They can rarely appear in humans.
Agriculture officials have been working to keep screwworm out of the United States. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins suspended imports of animals through southern ports in May as part of that effort, although there was a phased reopening starting in June.
Officials have also been working on producing sterile male screwworm flies and are planning to prepare to release them into swarms in northern Mexico in the future. They say that utilizing that and other features in partnership with Panama and Mexico could eradicate the screwworm.
