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According to a World Health Organization survey of 600 people in 20 countries, Avian Influenza (AI) was the top health issue of 2005 and sixth on the list of health issues most neglected.

As reports continue of a high pathogenic strain of AI, known as H5N1, wreaking havoc in the Asian poultry industry, officials in Ohio and Washington, D.C. are working to ensure the disease does not have the same impact in the United States.

In early January, Congress approved $91.4 million in funding to enhance the U.S Department of Agriculture's efforts to prevent and prepare for AI. $73 million will be used for domestic programs such as increasing the current animal vaccine stockpile by 40 million doses, stepping up surveillance of wild birds and waterfowl and launching planning and preparedness training. The remaining money will be used in collaboration with international partners to control AI in Asian countries where the virus is currently endemic.

In Ohio, Gov. Bob Taft recently released a comprehensive plan to prevent, detect and respond to a flu pandemic.

"We must be vigilant in our preparation so that if pandemic flu does hit, we can detect it quickly and respond aggressively," Taft said in a news release.

The state's efforts to identify AI include the Ohio Department of Agriculture's (ODA) statewide animal disease surveillance program for all processed poultry, flu monitoring by the Ohio Department of Health and surveillance of wild birds by Ohio State University.

"The way the (poultry) industry is established in Ohio makes it difficult for this disease to prevail," said ODA Director Fred Dailey.

According to Jim Chakeres of the Ohio Poultry Association (OPA), the standards for raising poultry in the United States prevent the birds from having direct contact with wild migratory waterfowl or backyard poultry flocks, which are believed to be two major sources of AI transmission.

If AI were to hit the Ohio poultry industry, an alkaline hydrolysis unit at ODA's Reynoldsburg facility could be used to destroy pathogenic organisms. The unit uses heat, pressure and alkali to dispose up to 7,000 pounds of material in an eight-hour period.

In addition, Ohio has had in place for several years a Poultry Disease Plan that provides specific information to poultry producers to prevent and respond to an avian influenza outbreak.

"This is really our first line of defense against any emerging disease problems," said Mo Saif, a poultry disease expert with Ohio State University.

The OPA also has recently launched a new surveillance program to supplement the existing system that will expand testing for AI, mandate the reporting of all AI strains and expand requirements for the diagnosis of an unexplained avian disease.

During an OFBF hosted avian influenza round table that brought together nearly 40 representatives from Ohio's food and agricultural industries, state and federal government and Ohio State, Dailey emphasized that Ohio is out in front of the problem.

"This isn't something we just started when we read about avian influenza in the newspaper," he said.

Caption: Experts say the United States has significant biosecurity measures in place to prevent and control an avian influenza outbreak.