US Detects First Human Case of Flesh-Eating Screwworm in Maryland

The Health and Human Services Department said the case poses a ‘very low’ risk to public health in the United States.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Baltimore on Feb. 17, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The first human case of the flesh-eating screwworm parasite has been detected in the United States, involving an individual in Maryland, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on Aug. 25.

The person was infected with the New World screwworm parasite after returning to Maryland from El Salvador, HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement.