The United States successfully eradicated the New World Screwworm in the late 1960s, but Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says that former President Joe Biden’s open borders helped clear the way for its return.
Rollins laid out the case during a recent hearing, following news that the parasitic fly — which, in its larval (maggot) stage, enters livestock, pets, and even humans through open wounds and then feeds on living tissue — had breached the United States border for the first time in 50 years.
“Beginning in 2022 when the Darien Gap was breached, into 2023 when the screwworm began moving at a rapid pace up through Central America, and hitting Mexico in 2024 under the last administration,” Rollins described the timeline around the parasite’s migration, linking it to the mass migration of people who flooded the United States border during Biden’s administration due to his lax border policies.
“We know this development is a serious threat, but it did not catch us off guard,” Rollins added. “We’ve established a 20-kilometer movement zone, expedited targeted release of sterile flies in the affected area, we’ve increased the trapping for flies along the border, and are ramping up surveillance.”
Rollins shared several details about efforts already underway to stop the spread of the deadly parasite in an earlier X post, effectively stating that the Trump administration was declaring war on the invasive pest.
“We have been in full combat mode against this invasive threat since Day One,” she posted, adding, “This administration is working hand-in-hand with our Texas partners delivering an unprecedented response: hitting harder, faster, and smarter than ever before. Thanks to our proactive preparation and rapid response, American agriculture will not be disrupted. We will eradicate this threat.”
The first official case of the screwworm in the United States came last week when a young calf in Texas tested positive for the parasite.
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