ARLINGTON, Va. — After bird flu was detected in the poultry in Great Britain recently, the new guidance from the Center for Disease Control's Community Mitigation Guidance is particularly poignant.

NAFCU Director of Compliance Anthony Demangone noted that Great Britain is the most recent and country furthest West to report avian flu symptoms among poultry, which has put the potential for a pandemic hitting the U.S. back in the news.

Of the CDC report, Demangone said, “This isn't rocket science. It's things such as isolation and treatments, voluntary dismissal from school, closing down public venues such as sporting events and theaters. What I like about this guide though is it gives businesses some clear-cut guidance as to what to do and when to do it.”

The CDC ranks the severity of an outbreak from 1-5, 5 being the worst-case scenario and tells what communities should do based on severity. For example, in a severe case, schools might be closed up to 12 weeks.

Demangone concluded, “I know NCUA had credit unions focus a bit more on pandemic planning this year and this guide certainly should assist credit unions in complying with that guidance.”