The United States has enough of the antiviral medication oseltamivir, marketed by Roche Laboratories as Tamiflu, to treat about 2.3 million people.
But some 90 million people would need the medication in the event of a flu pandemic, said Hayden, adding the nation should have enough for 4.3 million people by year's end.
The problem isn't preparation, but rather that extra step needed to ensure (if possible) that a flu pandemic would not greatly harm the United States. After the Great War the Spanish flu killed more civilians and soldiers in Europe and America, than the war itself. I decided to see if the rationale of "if it can happen once, it can happen again" was emphasized in any other related stories. Not surprisingly, the primary concern centered around the recent "avian flu" in South-East Asia and it's potential to devastate unwary populaces:
Planning makes sense. But planning for ''brutal" or ''extreme" quarantine of large numbers or areas of the United States would create many more problems than it could solve. (in response to comments by Bush about using the military to quarantine flu-ridden areas of the country)
WASHINGTON (AP) - A super-flu could kill up to 1.9 million Americans, said a draft of the U.S. government's plan to fight a worldwide epidemic.
Officials are rewriting that plan to designate not just who cares for the sick but who will keep the country running amid the chaos, said an influenza specialist who is advising the government on those decisions.
Medical News Today It is crucial, said one US official, for countries to share information as it appears - immediately. There is concern that some nations may drag their feet or cover things up, as did China three years ago during the SARS outbreak. If this were to happen as a bird flu pandemic erupted, the consequences could be devastating for the whole globe. A UN official earlier this week said a flu pandemic could kill over 100 million people. (note: this article was the first I came across explicitly stating that the "avian flu" vaccination will be injected into birds, not people.)
Reuters AlertNet (Sept. 30) GENEVA, Sept 30 (Reuters) - The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday 2-7.4 million deaths was a reasonable working forecast for a global influenza pandemic -- distancing itself from a top U.N. official's figure of up to 150 million.
Dr. David Nabarro, named on Thursday as the U.N. coordinator for global readiness against an outbreak, had said that the world response would determine whether a flu virus ends up killing 5 million or as many as 150 million. The top figure, which was widely quoted in news reports, would be some three times the toll from the most lethal flu pandemic so far recorded -- the 1918-19 'Spanish flu' outbreak in which up to 50 million may have died. "There is obvious confusion, and I think that has to be straightened out. I don't think you will hear Dr. Nabarro say the same sort of thing again," WHO influenza spokesman Dick Thompson told a news briefing. This last article really clears up the numbers game that the latest touches on. Either way, experts are expecting quite a threat from this new disease. Let's all hope that the avian flu waits till after Thanksgiving to spring its trap. --------