The USDA and Health and Human Services have committed $199 million to aid dairy producers and to protect public health. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said dairy farmers are eligible for up to $28,000 in USDA in three months to help eradicate the virus from their herds.

There are five types of financial assistance for dairy farmers with infected herds. This includes up to $2,000 a month for personal protection equipment (PPE); up to $1,500 a month to improve biosecurity standards; up to $2,000 a month for heat treatment of milk that must be discarded; up to $10,000 a month for veterinary care to treat infected cows and up to $100 a month for shipping tests from ill or suspect cattle.

To date, HPAI has been confirmed in 42 herds across nine states. More herds may be affected since some producers might hesitate to step forward. While pasteurization kills the virus, an FDA test of mild purchased at grocery stores found H5N1 virus fragments in one of every five samples.

Read more about USDA and HHS to help eradicate HPAI here.