Aug. 20 (UPI) -- The Food and Drug Administration has authorized emergency use of animal drugs to treat and prevent infestations of the New World Screwworm, which poses an emerging threat to U.S. livestock and food security.
The parasite infests warm-blooded animals and in rare cases humans, causing tissue damage and occasionally death. Though eradicated in both North and Central America a decades ago, the screwworm has progressed north since 2022 and is nearing the U.S. southern border.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it issued a declaration on Tuesday allowing the FDA to issue emergency use authorizations for animal drugs to prevent infestations.
"Today, we are taking decisive action to safeguard the nation's food supply from this emerging threat," HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement.
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