A Louisiana resident has died after being hospitalized for a severe case of H5N1 bird flu, the state's health department said Monday. The big picture: This marks the first bird flu-related human death in the U.

The case in Louisiana is the first human death from bird flu in the U.S. during this current outbreak, but there was a death in Mexico back in May 2024 in a patient with no known exposure to farm animals. The case, much like the patient in Louisiana, was in a person with other underlying conditions, though it’s not clear what those may have been.

The patient, who was older than 65 and had underlying medical conditions, was hospitalized Dec. 18 in critical condition with severe respiratory illness.

The Florida Wildlife Hospital has received positive cases of avian influenza, also known as Bird Flu, in Brevard County.

The person who died was older than 65 and contracted H5N1 after exposure to a combination of a non-commercial backyard flock and wild birds.

The first U.S. bird flu death has been reported. Louisiana health officials announced the death Monday of a person who had been hospitalized with severe respiratory symptoms.

The Louisiana Department of Health reported that a 65-year-old man who was hospitalized with the bird flu (highly pathogenic avian influenza, HPAI) has died. It is the first reported human death in the U.

The first U.S. bird flu death has been reported — a person in Louisiana who had been hospitalized with severe respiratory symptoms. Louisiana health officials announced the death on Monday. Health officials have said the person was older than 65,