Not good, indeed.
It wouldn't surprise me in the least if there was a cover-up. Beef is big business in the U.S. and that big business, especially the beef industry, has done some pretty sketchy things over the years (read: Fast-Food Nation, if there is any doubt)
The federal government (not just the current incarnation
) is certainly very protective of the almighty corporation. If there were an epidemic, it isn't all that hard to imagine what it would do to the U.S. economy. I imagine that's why there is a cover-up,
if there is a cover-up.