Updated

Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 8

USDA Confirms 2 More Texas Screwworm Cases, Lifting Total to 4 as Eradication Plan Lags

Updated

Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 8

USDA Confirms 2 More Texas Screwworm Cases, Lifting Total to 4 as Eradication Plan Lags

Q: What was the rationale behind defunding a key biosecurity program just before this flesh-eating parasite's return?

The stated rationale was cost-cutting under a broader government-efficiency drive, not a biosecurity-based assessment that the screwworm threat had disappeared. According to the reporting and supporting material, the program was cut by the Department of Government Efficiency, launched by the Trump administration and led at the time by Elon Musk, as part of a wider reduction in USAID grants and programs. The justification publicly associated with those cuts was that USAID spending was viewed as wasteful and politically driven, with Musk describing the agency in sweeping terms as a misuse of taxpayer money. What is not evident from the available reporting is any technical or agricultural case that the screwworm monitoring program itself was ineffective or unnecessary. On the contrary, agriculture officials and cattle industry leaders had been warning that infections were moving north through Mexico and had urged continued intervention. The funding was removed just days before the U.S. lifted a temporary suspension on cattle imports from Mexico, weakening a layer of monitoring as cross-border livestock movement resumed. So the practical answer is that the defunding appears to have been driven by a general budget-cutting and anti-bureaucracy rationale, rather than by evidence that the parasite no longer posed a risk. That is why critics now argue the decision left a preventable gap in surveillance and containment just before the parasite reappeared in Texas.

3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 8

Four confirmed Texas screwworm cases are now on the books after USDA identified a calf in La Salle County and a dog in Andrews County, hundreds of miles apart.
USDA said the flesh-eating parasite is being sampled and targeted for eradication, but experts say the main long-term fix—releasing sterile male flies—is still months away.
Canada already halted livestock imports from Texas, while federal officials said the infected dog had recently been in Mexico, underscoring cross-border transmission risks.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said the federal response is too slow and pushed a poison-bait approach, which USDA and other experts say is unproven and could harm other animals, insects and humans.
The outbreak revives a pest eliminated from the U.S. in the 1960s and threatens cattle producers during summer, though officials say a handful of new detections would not necessarily mean rapid spread.

Sources

The Associated Press1h ago

USDA Confirms Two More New World Screwworm Cases in Texas

Forbes18h ago

USDA Confirms New World Screwworm in Texas Animals Amid Funding Cuts and Mexican Cattle Import Resumption

Daily Kos18h ago

What to know about screwworm in Texas - Daily Kos

6 Sources

With cattle herds at a 75-year low, will this parasite outbreak cause an irreversible crisis for America's beef supply?

What was the rationale behind defunding a key biosecurity program just before this flesh-eating parasite's return?

Can millions of lab-grown sterile flies stop a parasite that decades of work had successfully eradicated?

Texas Faces $1.8 Billion Threat: 2026 Screwworm Outbreak Escalates, Imperiling Cattle Industry and Food Supply

Overview

As of June 8, 2026, Texas faces a rapidly escalating outbreak of New World screwworm, with four confirmed cases across at least three counties and infections found in both livestock and pets. The outbreak has spread over 300 miles from the original detection zone, making containment more challenging. In response, federal and state agencies have formed a unified Incident Command Team to coordinate immediate actions. These efforts include strict quarantines, movement controls, and the release of sterile flies to stop the pest’s reproduction, aiming to control the outbreak’s growing scope and protect animal and public health.

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