People Fear Bird Flu's Impact on Finances Over Health

Since January, there have been outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza on four commercial farms in Maryland, affecting nearly 800,000 chickens meant for meat.

A recent poll showed nearly 90% of Americans are more concerned about bird flu driving up food prices than its effects on health. Egg prices have surged by more than 70% in some regions because of supply shortages caused by bird flu. The new poll from the health policy research organization KFF spans across political parties, race and ethnicity, as well as household income levels.

Audrey Kearney, senior survey analyst for KFF, emphasized how concern at the cash register stands out.

"We found that only half of the public said that they are really hearing a lot about bird flu on a day-to-day basis," Kearney reported. "It might not be resonating in the way of health, but it definitely is resonating when they go grocery shopping."

In Maryland, more than 2 chickens laid more than 58 million eggs in a single month, according to the state's Department of Agriculture.

Kearney added one of the biggest takeaways from the polling data is Americans now have different levels of trust between community experts they are interacting with on a daily basis and major institutions.

"Messages from people's doctors are going to be the most well received and probably the most effective on that front," Kearney explained.