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RFK Jr Declares Cyclospora Outbreak Under Control as FDA Reverses Lettuce Recall

James Rodriguez 0 comments 4 min read
RFK Jr Declares Cyclospora Outbreak Under Control as FDA Reverses Lettuce Recall

Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr declared the nation's cyclospora outbreak contained on Tuesday, just hours after federal regulators abruptly reversed a multi-state lettuce recall they had labeled a false alarm.

Kennedy told reporters the source of the outbreak had been identified through "extensive forensics" and that affected companies had implemented recalls. The parasite, which causes severe gastrointestinal illness, has spread across 34 states, with more than 1,600 confirmed cases and 5,100 pending cases reported nationally.

The assurance came as experts continued warning the outbreak could worsen. The CDC previously cautioned that cases would likely spike through August due to the parasite's two-week incubation period, meaning infections already acquired were still developing into illness.

The FDA's weekend reversal underscored the chaos surrounding the response. On Friday, the agency initiated a recall of shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell locations across Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. By Saturday, the recall had expanded to products sold in 27 states at major retailers including Walmart. Scientists then rechecked samples and declared the findings a mistake on Sunday, telling Taylor Farms, the major producer, that the agency had issued a false positive.

Michigan alone reported more than 6,571 cases as of Tuesday, dwarfing the national CDC count and highlighting the outbreak's true scale. Experts have criticized the federal response as sluggish, pointing to significant workforce reductions and budget cuts at disease surveillance agencies.

The Trump administration cut the FoodNet surveillance program, which monitors food safety trends, from tracking eight pathogens to just two. Cyclospora monitoring became optional. Additionally, federal officials eliminated $11.4 billion in pandemic-era health department grants that had expanded outbreak investigation capacity, eliminated roughly a quarter of CDC staff, and reduced a federal parasitic disease lab from 11 workers to three.

Kennedy defended the reductions, characterizing them as eliminating redundancy. But FoodNet had proven its value, having warned in 2022 that cyclospora cases were rising. The surveillance cuts left the nation less able to detect and respond to exactly the kind of outbreak now unfolding.

Cyclospora is a protozoan parasite that thrives in warm weather and spreads through contaminated water and food. It typically peaks during summer months. Symptoms appear two days to two weeks after infection, making it difficult for people to immediately identify their source.

Kennedy said earlier in the week that knowing the probable culprit would help people make informed choices. He has acknowledged cuts to FoodNet but insisted surveillance capacity remained intact through state partnerships.

Author James Rodriguez: "The declaration that this outbreak is under control rings hollow when Michigan alone is reporting six times more cases than the CDC's official count, and experts are predicting continued growth through the month."

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