Trump pauses updates from CDC, FDA & more. Here’s where Californians can find health info
President Donald Trump has ordered federal health agencies to pause some external communications through Saturday, Feb. 1.
However, California residents still have access to some information about respiratory virus transmission as the illnesses spread throughout the state.
The pause order was delivered Jan. 21, CNN reported, and will affect services such as some regular scientific reports, health advisories and website updates from federal health agencies.
Those include the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health and U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Some federal public health website updates are still happening, and CNN reported the Trump administration’s order came with “with little guidance as to what exactly it covered.”
The order does require agencies to get approval from the White House prior to disseminating external communications, Time magazine reports.
On Wednesday, the California Department of Public Health said it’s dedicated to providing detailed information to the public.
“California will continue to work collaboratively with our federal partners to ensure that families in our state are healthy and our communities are vibrant places to live and work,” agency spokesman Grant Boyken wrote in a Wednesday email to The Sacramento Bee. “We remain committed to protecting Californians’ access to the critical services and programs they need.”
What are flu, RSV and COVID-19 levels in California?
The California Public Health Department has an online seasonal respiratory illness dashboard with information about COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus.
As of Wednesday, the dashboard had been last updated with data from Jan. 12 to Jan. 18.
Flu activity “continues to be high” in California, with 23.1 % of all samples returning positive, the state Department of Public Health indicated in its most recent respiratory virus report.
“RSV activity is moderate but decreasing and COVID-19 activity continues to be low,” the report said.
California was at a moderate level for respiratory virus activity, according to the most recent update from the CDC published Jan. 24.
The federal map reports state-level data on the transmission of coronavirus, flu and RSV.
What about bird flu?
Highly pathogenic avian flu also remains a concern in California, where more than 4 million chickens and turkeys have been killed since 2022 in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading.
Meanwhile, more than 700 California dairies have been quarantined due to bird flu, including Raw Farm dairy in Fresno County.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in December in response to bird flu.
As of Jan. 24, the CDC’s H5 Bird Flu: Current Situation website reported the avian flu outbreak had led to 67 confirmed total human cases in the United States and one death. That site was last updated Jan. 17.
The California Department of Public Health’s bird flu situation page indicated that the “current risk to the public” for contracting the virus “remains low.”
Officially, 38 people have tested positive for avian flu in California, according to the most recent state data, released Jan. 15.
As of Wednesday, no person-to person spread of bird flu had been detected in California, the state agency said.
Public health officials often recommend hand washing, avoiding others when you are sick and cleaning contaminated surfaces to mitigate a variety of viruses.
Where can you find public health information in California?
Here’s a list of online resources on respiratory viruses from the CDC and California Department of Public Health from some of these may still be affected by Trump’s pause.
California residents can schedule appointments for COVID-19 vaccines and flu vaccines at CVS or Walgreens locations.
This story was originally published January 29, 2025 at 2:18 PM with the headline "Trump pauses updates from CDC, FDA & more. Here’s where Californians can find health info."