# USDA Chief Blames Border Policy for New World Screwworm Cases  
**Published:** 2026-06-11T09:00:29.000Z  
**Source:** [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/11/repub/usda-secretary-rollins-blames-biden-border-policies-for-screwworm-threat/)  
**AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001)  
**Canonical:** https://lincolne.news/article/usda-chief-blames-border-policy-for-new-world-screwworm-cases

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins blamed the Biden administration's border policies Wednesday for six confirmed cases of the New World screwworm that have emerged in the United States, according to remarks made during a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing. [The Nebraska Examiner first reported](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/11/repub/usda-secretary-rollins-blames-biden-border-policies-for-screwworm-threat/) on Rollins' comments.

Rollins stated that five cases were confirmed in South Texas and one in New Mexico. [The CDC reported the first U.S. animal case on June 3, 2026](https://www.cdc.gov/new-world-screwworm/situation-summary/index.html), marking the return of the parasite to the country after its eradication in 1966. [The screwworm has not yet been detected in Nebraska, though University of Nebraska experts are monitoring developments](https://ianrnews.unl.edu/article/unl-experts-monitoring-new-world-screwworm-following-texas-detection).

The New World screwworm is a devastating fly that lays eggs in animal wounds, with larvae feeding on living flesh and potentially causing death if untreated. Rollins emphasized that Mexican cartels' "refusal to crack down" combined with previous administration policies allowed the pest to spread northward, transmitted through infested livestock and pets.

However, during the hearing, Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota raised concerns that recent Trump administration staffing cuts could undermine eradication efforts. [The USDA has lost more than 21,000 employees since Trump returned to office](https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/analytics/workforce-changes), with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service losing 25 percent of its staff, including more than 300 veterinary service employees.

Rollins countered that the department has actually increased screwworm-prevention staff from 10 to more than 120 personnel and allocated $1.3 billion to combat the threat. [The USDA has announced the NWS Grand Challenge with up to $100 million available for innovative screwworm solutions](https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/stop-screwworm).

Rollins said the USDA delayed the screwworm's arrival by closing all southern border ports to livestock trade last summer. [Using sterile insect technique, the agency eradicated the pest from the United States in 1966 and eliminated a small outbreak from the Florida Keys in 2017](https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/cattle/ticks/screwworm). The department currently produces about 100 million sterilized flies weekly but needs to increase production to 500 million per week for eradication.

Rollins stressed that while the screwworm threatens livestock, particularly cattle herds, it poses no risk to food safety itself. "The food supply is 100% safe," she said. "This is not a disease. It's not a virus. It's a fly."

## Sources

- [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/11/repub/usda-secretary-rollins-blames-biden-border-policies-for-screwworm-threat/)
- [CDC New World Screwworm Outbreak page with current status and detection information](https://www.cdc.gov/new-world-screwworm/situation-summary/index.html)
- [University of Nebraska-Lincoln IANR News report on screwworm monitoring](https://ianrnews.unl.edu/article/unl-experts-monitoring-new-world-screwworm-following-texas-detection)
- [Office of Personnel Management workforce data showing federal employment changes](https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/analytics/workforce-changes)
- [USDA Screwworm.gov unified government response portal](https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/stop-screwworm)

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This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Nebraska Examiner, enriched with 3 web searches. The original source is available at https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/11/repub/usda-secretary-rollins-blames-biden-border-policies-for-screwworm-threat/.