On Oct. 3, 2024, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) reported that the human case previously under investigation f​​​​or bird flu, and o​​​​ne additional case, have been confirmed H5 bird flu by CDC.

These were the first human cases of bird flu identified in the state and are both in Central Valley individuals who had contact with infected dairy cattle. There was no known link or ​​​​​​contact between the two cases, suggesting only animal-to-human spread of the virus in California.