There are over 1,800 active cases of the New World Screwworm in Mexico, and 15 of those cases are now less than 100 miles from the U.S. border. Rear Admiral Michael Schroyer, the associate administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, says that sterile screwworm flies are strategically being placed in areas where they are needed the most.
Schmoyer is also the Director of the New World Screwworm Directorate and he says that predictive models are being used to try and project where sterile flies should be released by the USDA.
Despite the best efforts of APHIS and USDA to control the New World Screwworm flies and limit their movement northward, Schmoyer says U.S. officials are prepared for action if the flies cross the U.S. border.
That was Michael Schmoyer of APHIS.
