(CIDRAP News) National and international health authorities said today that they have begun the first steps in manufacturing a vaccine against the novel H1N1 swine influenza, though they appeared to disagree over whether full-scale manufacturing will move forward.
(CIDRAP News) Federal officials will acquire 13 million more courses of antiviral medication for the nation's Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) and have begun sending 400,000 treatment courses to Mexico to help control the spread of the virus, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced yesterday.
(CIDRAP News) Vice President Joe Biden today told Matt Lauer on NBC's "Today" show that he has advised his family not to fly on airlines or ride subways to avoid exposure to the swine flu virus, a message that goes well beyond the government's current travel advice for Americans to avoid nonessential trips to Mexico.
(CIDRAP News) Top US officials responsible for managing the nation's response to the swine influenza outbreak today faced increasing pressure to implement more aggressive measures at the Mexico border and reveal more details about the status of a vaccine.
(CIDRAP News) –At an emergency hearing today of the Senate appropriations committee, Sen Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said the Obama administration will ask for $1.5 billion to fight the swine influenza epidemic, as committee members sought to get a handle on the elements and cost estimates of the public health response.
(CIDRAP News) The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today confirmed 20 more swine influenza cases, all connected to previous cases at a New York City high school, and said federal officials will issue new travel advice urging against nonessential travel to Mexico.
Editor's note: Includes two new sections, on phase change considerations and on possible impact.
(CIDRAP News) The World Health Organization (WHO) today raised its official pandemic alert level from the current phase 3 to phase 4 on its 6-phase scale, saying the newly identified swine influenza virus has made a pandemic more likely but not inevitable.
(CIDRAP News) Federal officials, speaking at a White House briefing on the swine influenza outbreak today, said the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is declaring a public health emergency, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 9 more human cases.
(CIDRAP News) Health officials from Kansas and New York today announced more confirmed and probable swine influenza cases, as an emergency panel of the World Health Organization (WHO) met but stopped short of raising the global pandemic alert level.
Apr 23, 2009
