Can H5N1 avian influenza in dairy cattle be contained in the US?

The emergence and sustained spread of H5N1 in US dairy cattle since 2024 have demonstrated that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is capable of establishing long-term transmission in livestock. Genomic surveillance has clarified national patterns of spatial diffusion, interspecies transmission, and viral evolution, but critical data gaps remain that impede efforts to track virus movements in real time, identify modes of transmission, and inform control efforts. More than three years into the current outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza in the United States, hopes of eradicating the virus have faded. Poultry farmers continue to experience repeated introductions of H5N1 from wild birds, necessitating the mass culling of infected poultry.