USDA releases 180-day report on avian influenza efforts
By USDA
Jul 7, 2006
The report details USDA's efforts both internationally and domestically to combat highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza (HPAI H5N1).
* USDA and state animal health officials are working cooperatively with the poultry industry to conduct surveillance at breeding flocks, slaughter plants, live-bird markets, livestock auctions and poultry dealers.
* USDA is conducting AI surveillance in wild migratory birds in Alaska and ten other states. Initial AI screening tests are performed by one of more than 45 USDA approved laboratories in the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN). In the case of wild bird samples, the U.S. Department of the Interior's National Wildlife Health Center also performs initial screening tests.
* Much more:
http://www.ntxe-news.com/artman/publish/article_35219.shtml
________________________________________________________
[Is this first statement really true?]
Are Americans ready for an avian influenza outbreak?
ORLANDO - As I boarded a plane in Istanbul some weeks ago, a voice over the intercom announced that chicken would not be served on the flight to New York just as a safety precaution in light of avian influenza concerns. Instead, passengers would receive a pasta dish.
http://159.54.227.3/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060708/OPINION/607080351/1005
_____________________________________________________________________
PAHO conducts Avian Influenza preparedness workshop in Grenada.
http://www.klassicgrenada.com/index.pl/article?id=1841218
_____________________________________
Oklahoma To Stockpile Anti-Viral Drugs Over Fears Of Pandemic
AP - 7/7/2006 2:31 PM - Updated: 7/7/2006 2:56 PM
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- State health officials plan to stockpile thousands of doses of two antiviral drugs that could mean the difference between life and death for Oklahomans infected in a flu pandemic.
But the number of doses the Department of Health initially plans to buy is a mere fraction of what federal officials believe would be needed if the state was caught up in a global outbreak of Asian bird flu or some other new strain of influenza.
The Legislature this spring allocated $500,000 to buy doses of Tamiflu and another antiviral drug, Relenza, to stockpile for use during a pandemic. Combined with federal money, this would be enough to pay for about 35,000 courses of the drugs. A course is the supply needed to treat one person.
http://www.kotv.com/news/?107192
_______________________________________
States rush, but some lag on bird flu
Saturday, July 08, 2006
WASHINGTON -- South Carolina is in. Utah and Alabama, too.
Some states aren't waiting for an Aug. 1 deadline to seek help from the federal government in buying anti-bird-flu medicine for a possible pandemic.
As part of its pandemic preparations, the federal government is stockpiling Tamiflu and other anti-flu medications, which can reduce the symptoms associated with influenza. The Bush administration plans to buy enough to treat 44 million people.
States can buy more if they want. The government is negotiating a price with Roche Laboratories, Inc., which makes Tamiflu, and will pay a quarter of the costs, up to a prescribed amount for each state. In all, states could use the subsidy to buy anti-flu medications for an additional 31 million people.
The Department of Health and Human Services had initially set a July 1 deadline for states to indicate whether they would move forward with the purchase, but some states wanted more time, spokesman Bill Hall said. So the deadline was delayed until Aug. 1.
Mr. Hall stressed that the deadline does not obligate states to a specific course of action. Rather, it serves as guidance to his department for its planning.
Montana and Arizona want only a little extra help.
Meanwhile, states such as Washington say they plan to take full advantage of the next few weeks to determine the right amount of drugs to purchase.
New Jersey has told the federal department that it wants enough to treat about 900,000 people.
The amount Pennsylvania, with a population of 12.4 million, is planning to buy was unavailable yesterday, but the Health and Human Services Department shows it is eligible for a federal subsidy for 1,298,844 courses.
Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University's medical school in Nashville, Tenn.,
recommends that states have
some
anti-flu medication stockpiled in case of a pandemic. But he said there's no right answer regarding just how much the states should have on hand.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06189/704284-114.stm
____________________________________
NY Buying 1 Million Tamiflu Treatments
July 7, 2006, 2:53PM
By MARK JOHNSON The Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York is spending about $23 million to stockpile antiviral medications in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak in the coming years.
Rob Kenny, a spokesman for the New York State Health Department said the state plans to buy more than 1 million Tamiflu treatment courses and another 227,000 courses of Relenza. New York, a state of more than 19 million people, has 60,000 Tamiflu treatment courses on hand already.---
Tamiflu is not a complete answer by any stretch of the imagination," he said. "It's really much more concerning to me that our public health and hospital system is not ready to take care of a large number of patients."
A national report by the American College of Emergency Physicians in January found much of the nation wasn't prepared for the bird flu.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4031609.html
Ping to # 20.
ORLANDO - As I boarded a plane in Istanbul some weeks ago, a voice over the intercom announced that chicken would not be served on the flight to New York just as a safety precaution in light of avian influenza concerns. Instead, passengers would receive a pasta dish.
Even though I knew from my research that properly cooked chicken poses no risk, I swallowed hard. After all, I had eaten chicken at least twice a day during my stay. The kebabs, in particular, defy resistance.
But then I thought, better to err on the side of caution. Given all of the uncertainties surrounding avian influenza and evidence of apparent human-to-human transmissions, however small, I would rather see serious precautions taken. My participation in a subsequent avian influenza conference and other discussions dealing with the issue only reinforced that belief.
So, I was disturbed to read a recent national survey that showed two-thirds of American businesses are not prepared for a human influenza pandemic. I strongly suspect that the problem is even worse among individuals. That has to change. As a Florida resident, I have grown accustomed to setting aside a supply of food, medicine and other necessities to hold out during the week or two of limited access to such goods that a hurricane could impose at any time. But the threat of a global human influenza pandemic is something else altogether, with the prospect of restricted or no availability of many goods for several weeks or months. Moreover, the periods of deprivation could come in waves, with brief respites in between, for a year or longer.
Realistically, then, how should people prepare?
The U.S. government (www.pandemicflu.gov) recommends practical steps for individuals and families. It advises to plan for a pandemic by setting aside a two-week supply (The governor of Mass. says 30 days) of food, especially nonperishables such as canned foods, cereals, crackers, water and juices. It further advises obtaining an extra supply of prescription medicines, and securing a store of nonprescription drugs and other health and emergency supplies, including soap, hand wash, thermometers, vitamins, flashlights, batteries, portable radios, manual can openers, garbage bags and tissue paper.
Finally, it encourages strategizing with family members; getting involved in community planning; frequent hand-washing; covering coughs and sneezes with tissues; and staying away from those who are ill.
Beyond that, U.S. officials and those in other countries and at international organizations have undertaken a number of initiatives to monitor and provide early warnings about avian influenza developments.
Some critics do not believe that governments are doing enough and maintain that in the event of a human influenza pandemic, people should not count on much help beyond what they provide for themselves. What would that entail? A 30-day supply of essential goods? A 60-day supply? A 90-day supply? And, if so, how can those of limited financial means hope to take care of themselves?(They'll probably come looking for your 'stuff.')
Still other critics tend to dismiss the idea of a human influenza pandemic as improbable, suggesting that governments have simply come up with another gimmick to distract people from "real" issues.
I am interested in what readers have to say about the avian influenza issue and the threat of a human influenza pandemic. Is it real? Is it hype? Do you care? Are you prepared? If so, how have you prepared? Do you have faith in what the U.S. government and others are doing to monitor the problem?
Kindly direct your thoughts, observations and strategies to me at jbersia@orlandosentinel.com, and I will summarize the responses in a future column on avian influenza.
John Bersia, who won a Pulitzer Prize in editorial writing for the Orlando Sentinel in 2000, can be reached at jbersia@orlandosentinel.com.
(Maybe someone ought to email John and invite him to our BF threads her on FR?)