When the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) transitions its leadership with Donald Trump’s return to the presidency, a thorough dialogue concerning vaccination for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) can be expected, a former USDA Under Secretary Hunt Shipman said.
Shipman, who served in the under secretary role from 2001 to 2003, and spent a year after that as the majority staff director for the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee, offered insights on what could be expected with the incoming presidential administration during the webinar, “Looking Ahead: Impact of the 2024 Elections on Ag Law and Policy.”
Shipman, who now is the principal and director of Cornerstone Government Affairs, said he “knows there’s divisions in the poultry industry,” about whether to allow HPAI vaccination.
He did not speculate on which the new administration would eventually side, but he does believe it will be looked at objectively.
“I think this administration will have a team at APHIS and in the marketing and regulatory programs area that will hear out both sides and make an informed decision,” said Shipman.
“I think this topic has kind of been put on hold, and we continue to see HPAI outbreaks around the country, and a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Germany, so I think the vaccination topics, both generally and specifically, will be something that they’ll need to take on very quickly.”
The potential impact of Kennedy
Shipman added that should Robert F. Kennedy Jr., known for being an anti-vaccination advocate, be confirmed as the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), it will have an impact on any decisions regarding HPAI vaccination.
However, Shipman said he wasn’t sure how involved Kennedy would be in any HPAI vaccine discussions, if he is even involved at all.
The webinar was held on January 15 and hosted by the National Agricultural Law Center.
View our continuing coverage of the global avian influenza situation.
