12/08 - H5N1 | HHS/World Bank Advise and Make Ready to Help Pandemic Suffering Countr

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<B><font size=+1 color=red><center>Possible Human Transmission Of Bird Flu Investigated</font>

By Kate Walker, UPI Correspondent
Washington (UPI) Dec 06, 2005
<A href="http://www.terradaily.com/news/epidemics-05zzzzo.html">www.TerraDaily.com</a></center>

There has been further debate concerning the possible instances of human-to-human avian-influenza transmission suspected by some scientists in Thailand and Indonesia.</b>

The suspected cases of human-to-human transmission are currently being examined by international health authorities, and there has not yet been any confirmation that the disease can be contracted from anything other than infected birds and their mucus and feces.

It is possible that the cases currently under review, that of two young men in Thailand, and three members of the same family and a nurse in Vietnam, do not represent the human transmissible pandemic much forecast in the media, but instead are an interim step in the infectious process.

Scientists and health experts have long discussed the possibility that H5N1 may trade some of its virulence for increased transmission, leading to a dramatic increase in the number of cases reported, but an equal decline in the disease's mortality rates, currently in the vicinity of 50 percent.

Dr. Charoen Chuchottaworn, the Thai avian-flu expert whose fears of human-to-human transmission were reported by United Press International Dec. 2, believed that the cases he observed where the infected reported only mild influenza symptoms yet tested positive for H5N1 were a likely example of the virus exchanging pathogenicity for ease of infection and theorized that the cases he had seen may represent only "the tip of an iceberg."

A report originally published by the Cox News Service said, "Planners believe that some person-to-person transmission has occurred but say limited health care resources in Asia make it difficult to detect clustered cases."

However, Dr. Scott Dowell of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said, "It is always difficult to be sure if you have a couple of cases in a family, because generally speaking, members of a family have been exposed to the family's chickens as well as to each other."

Although it is presently impossible to ascertain whether any form of human-to-human transmission has ever occurred, either of the high- or low-pathogenic variety, it is human-to-human transmission that health experts most fear, and the results of the investigations currently under way by international health authorities are eagerly awaited.

Meanwhile:

-- China confirmed its fourth human case of avian-influenza infection Tuesday.

A 10-year-old girl from Guangxi, in the south of the country, has been suffering from fever and flu-like symptoms since Nov. 23, although tests only confirmed the presence of H5N1 this week.

The girl, who is in critical condition, was exposed to infected birds before contracting the infection and is not thought to be an example of the possible human-to-human transmission suspected by some scientists in Southeast Asia.

None of her friends or family members has exhibited signs of infection, giving further credence to the belief that she was contaminated by sick poultry.

The Chinese government responded to the confirmation of infection by sending specialized infection-control teams to Ziyuan county, where the girl lives.

-- In response to the outbreaks confirmed over the weekend, and which locals claim have been reported without action since September, the Ukrainian government Tuesday declared a state of emergency in the autonomous region of Crimea.

Mass poultry vaccinations are currently in progress, and Ukraine has banned imports of poultry from the area covered by the state of emergency.

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>County health officer: Bird flu threat serious</font>

Thursday, Dec. 8, 2005
by Sherry Greenfield
<A href="http://www.gazette.net/stories/120805/urbanew200045_31922.shtml">Gazette.net</a></center>

Barbara Brookmyer wants Frederick County officials to understand the grave concern surrounding the bird flu outbreak in Southeast Asia that has spread into Europe.</b>

As Frederick County’s health officer, her first stop Tuesday was at a meeting of the Frederick Board of County Commissioners.

‘‘The avian flu normally infects domestic birds,” Brookmyer told commissioners. ‘‘What we’re concerned about is that the avian virus could jump from species and spread to humans. ...The good news is there has been no human-to-human contact. The bad news is it’s spreading widely. The infection in humans, although uncommon, has resulted in severe illness and high mortality.”

According to Brookmyer, there are 133 reported cases of people infected with the disease. Millions of birds have been slaughtered in Asia to prevent further spread of the disease.

‘‘The current risk to Americans is low, and it has not been found in the U.S.,” she said. ‘‘There have been no human or poultry cases found in the U.S., but currently we are at a pandemic alert and planning is definitely a priority. ... Very likely, there will be little warning before a pandemic strike. The impact of the next pandemic could be severe.”

The last pandemic influenza occurred in 1918, and killed between 20 million and 40 million people worldwide, 675,000 of whom were Americans.

‘‘The affect on individual communities will be relatively prolonged for weeks to months,” Brookmyer said. ‘‘Planning is a high priority. The vaccine will be in short supply, and could take between four to six months to produce.”

The commissioners listened intently to Brookmyer’s warnings and suggestions on how residents in the county should prepare for a disease.

For example, frequently washing hands, assembling an emergency preparedness kit, and having an annual flu shot could possibly help ward of the bird flu.

‘‘I want to thank Dr. Brookmyer for bringing this to our attention,” said Commissioner Michael L. Cady (R).

Cady also questioned Brookmyer on whether she planned to make the presentation to other officials, including the Frederick County Board of Education.

‘‘Yes,” she said. ‘‘I will be talking to many groups.”

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<B><font size=+1 color=green><center>Guangxi confirms new human bird flu case</font>

Latest Updated by 2005-12-08 10:53:57
<A href="http://www.newsgd.com/news/China1/200512080015.htm">www.newsgd.com</a></center>

Guangxi
The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Tuesday night confirmed a new case of human infection of bird flu in Ziyuan County of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. </b>

The patient is a 10-year-old girl student surnamed Tang, who has been ill with fever and pneumonia since November 23, said an MOH press release.

The girl has been tested positive with the H5N1 virus by the China Disease Prevention and Control Center, and she has been under emergency treatment in hospital.

Tang has been confirmed to be infected with bird flu in accordance with the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Chinese government.

People who have close contacts with the patient have been brought under medical observation by local health departments. So far, no abnormities have been found among these people.

The regional health department and MOH have sent expert teams to direct and coordinate disease prevention and control in the area. Currently, experts are making further investigation in the source of the bird flu virus, since no bird flu cases have been reported in the county before.

In addition, the ministry has reported the case to the WHO, the country's Hong Kong and Macao special administration regions and Taiwan, and some foreign nations, the press release said.

Previously, China reported three human cases of bird flu and one suspicious case.

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<B><font size=+1 color=blue><center>New China Flu Victim May Mean Bird Cases Undetected</font>

CHINA: December 8, 2005
<A href="http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33897/story.htm">People's Daily.com</a></center>

BEIJING - A Chinese village where a 10-year-old girl fell ill with bird flu had not reported any poultry outbreaks, indicating the virus might be going undetected or unreported, the World Health Organisation said on Wednesday. </b>

WHO China representative Henk Bekedam said the situation, which had been found in other human cases both in China and in Southeast Asia, should be a warning that infections in people may not always be forewarned by mass deaths in animals.

"It's not always that clear that something is happening. Birds die. Poultry dies. And a farmer is used to birds sometimes dying. It's not always that clear that it is H5N1," Bekedam told a meeting of the Foreign Correspondent's Club.

China's Xinhua news agency reported the latest human case late on Tuesday, citing the Ministry of Health. The girl, from the southern Guangxi region, had been ill with pneumonia and fever since Nov. 23 and was under emergency treatment in hospital, the report said.

China has seen some 30 outbreaks this year of the H5N1 strain of bird flu. The disease mostly affects birds, but scientists fear it could mutate into a form that can pass easily between people, leading to a human influenza pandemic.

China has confirmed two human deaths from bird flu, both in the eastern province of Anhui. A 9-year-old boy in Hunan province survived the disease, while his dead sister is a suspected case.

The government has promised resources and openness in fighting bird flu after being widely criticised for an initial cover-up of the SARS virus in 2003. But Health Minister Gao Qiang has said rural doctors might be ill-equipped and ill-trained to detect cases.

Bekedam reiterated that reporting must be timely and there should be incentives to do so, adding that in the case of one outbreak in Hunan birds began dying on Oct. 6 but it was another two weeks before the Agriculture Ministry was informed.

While China has been compensating farmers about 10 yuan (US$1.25) per bird culled, he said farmers also needed to be supported during the period before they were allowed to restock their birds and go back into business.

Bekedam said people in the countryside were becoming more aware of the virus but the fact that about 70 percent of China's poultry population live in backyards meant monitoring the health of chickens and ducks was a huge challenge.

"It is inappropriate to be telling people they should be fearing birds and ducks in their area. It's unrealistic - they live in the middle of it," he said.

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<B><font size=+1 color=purple><center>Call For Asean To Be Cohesive In Facing Challenges To Business</font>

<A href="http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news_business.php?id=169404">www.bernama.com</a></center>

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 8 (Bernama) -- The Asean Business Advisory Council (Asean-BAC) Thursday called for Asean to commit itself to a strong and cohesive stance in facing the challenges impeding realisation of the grouping's enormous economic potential.</b>

Asean-BAC Chairman Datuk Syed Amin Aljeffri said the time had come for Asean to face these issues -- such as the recent tsunami and earthquakes in Indonesia, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) <u>and the anticipated avian flu pandemic </u>-- in such a manner for mutual benefit, economic development and sovereignty.

"The potential which lies within us should not be squandered," he said in a statement, ahead of the Asean Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) scheduled for Saturday and Sunday here in conjunction with the 11th Asean Summit that Malaysia will host on Monday and Tuesday.

Syed Amin said there was tremendous investment potential in the region and "what we intend to achieve during the summit is to create the awareness among industries, businesses and governments that is just waiting to be tapped, while facilitating the opportunities".

He said the Asean private sector had a strategic and crucial role to play as it could bypass bureaucracy to immediately channel aid when it was needed, respond rapidly to business opportunities and react productively to local market needs.

"Sometimes government red tape hinders rather than helps and, under rapidly changing condititions, it can be frustrating to see opportunities to provide aid or create prosperity slip away.

"However, the private sector is often in a better position to respond without having to be bogged down by procedures and protocol," he said.

The 2005 ABIS carries the theme "One Vision, One Identity, One Community - Beyond Borders: Developing Asean's Competitive Advantages" and will set the stage for Asean business to realise its collective potential and for global business communities to discover the opportunities which lie before them.

It is organised by the Asean-BAC together with the Asean Chamber of Commerce & Industry, East Asia Business Council and the Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute, and supported by the Asean Secretariat.

The Asean-BAC was established by the Asean leaders as the primary vehicle for private sector feedback and guidance to boost the efforts to create an integrated and competitive Asean economy during the 7th Asean Summit, which was held in Brunei in 2001.

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<B><font size=+1 color=red><center>Hui calls for Asian joint effort to fight bird flu </font>

<A href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-12/08/content_3891400.htm">www.chinaview.cn </a>
2005-12-08 01:33:59 </center>


KUNMING, Dec. 8 (Xinhuanet) -- Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu Wednesday called on Asian countries and international organizations to strengthen cooperation in the fight against bird flu. </b>

Addressing the opening ceremony of the Ministerial Conference for Asian Cooperation on HPAI (Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza) Control in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, Hui said that the spread of avian flu has exceeded national and regional boundaries and posed a threat to the humankind.

"It is not only an urgent task for all regional governments, but also a common obligation for the international community to protect the healthy growth of the poultry industry and the public health security," he noted.

He also called on the Asian countries and regions to strengthen cooperation with international and regional organizations to protect and construct the ecological environment so as to do a better job in fighting against bird flu.

"As a responsible government for the regional and global affairs," Hui said, "China has always been positively advocating and taking part in the global exchanges and cooperation on the prevention and control of the bird flu."

The Chinese government has been attaching great importance to this issue, Hui said, adding that since last year, China has published a set of rules and regulations to deal with emergencies related to the outbreak of HPAI and animal epidemic situation.

Local governments and departments at all levels have taken effective measures in the prevention and control of avian flu, he said.

Chinese Minister of Agriculture Du Qinglin, who chaired the opening ceremony, said the conference will play a "positive" role in helping shape an Asian regional anti-bird flu cooperative mechanism so as to jointly combat the bird flu threat.

"The conference will have a profound and long-lasting impact in this regard," the minister said.

He said China is willing to further expand areas of cooperation with other Asian members and regions to contribute to regional andg lobal anti-bird flu effort.

A joint Kunming Initiative was released at the end of the conference, which was sponsored by China's Ministry of Agriculture and attended by over 100 delegates from 16 Asian countries and six international organizations. Enditem

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>07 December 2005
<A href="http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=December&x=20051207175326ESnamfuaK0.5348583&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html">USINFO.STATE.GOV</A>

<font size=+1 color=green>White House Report, December 7: World Trade Organization, Bird Flu</font>
President Bush, Brazilian President Lula discuss upcoming WTO ministerial</b></font>

<font size=+0 color=blue>BUSH, LULA SEE HONG KONG TALKS AS OPPORTUNITY TO ADVANCE TRADE AGENDA</font>

<B>President Bush telephoned Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to discuss the upcoming World Trade Organization ministerial meeting to be held in Hong Kong December 13-18.</b>

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said December 7 that both leaders agreed that the meeting “represents a real opportunity to keep the trade agenda moving forward.”

The two presidents mentioned what McClellan described as “constructive discussions” between their countries’ negotiators ahead of the meeting and “underscored … the importance of working with others to achieve success.”

The Brazilian leader noted “positive contributions” that Bush has made to the discussion, “particularly with respect to agricultural subsidies, and to help create incentives for others to join the efforts for greater economic liberalization.” (See related article.)

Bush in turn expressed appreciation for President Lula’s leadership in the WTO negotiation process.

Lula also mentioned President Bush’s recent visit to Brazil, saying it “had been received with a lot of positive feedback.” (See related article.)

For additional information, see WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Meeting.

WHITE HOUSE TO HOLD PANDEMIC FLU EXERCISE DECEMBER 10

Press secretary McClellan announced that the White House will be holding a “table top exercise” December 10 on preparations and responses to a possible pandemic caused by avian flu.

“We have done much to plan for a pandemic, but planning alone is not enough. Plans must be tested and improved upon,” McClellan said.

The exercise will last four hours and will involve top cabinet and other government officials, though McClellan said President Bush would not be a participant.

The press secretary said there is no evidence to suggest that a pandemic is imminent. He said Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt recently returned from a trip to Asia and reported to Bush that despite some human infections from sick birds, avian flu “is still a disease that affects primarily animals.

“There are no reports of infected birds, animals or people in the United States,” McClellan said.

He said that “fair warning of this danger” has been given, as well as “time to prepare.

“We are constantly planning for various emergencies and aggressively looking for new ways to keep the homeland safe and secure. And this [exercise] is one example of accomplishing that,” McClellan said.

For additional information on the avian influenza and efforts to combat it, see Bird Flu.

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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<B><font size=+1 color=blue><center>U.S. grapples with bird flu preparations</font>

Wed Dec 7, 2005 5:49 PM ET
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent
<A href="http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-12-07T224854Z_01_RID567810_RTRUKOC_0_US-BIRDFLU-USA.xml&archived=False">today.reuters.com</a></center>

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Wednesday planned an exercise to see just how poorly prepared the country is to cope with a avian flu pandemic, even as lawmakers in Congress debated how much to spend for U.S. preparations.

The H5N1 avian influenza virus is spreading steadily among poultry, pushing westward out of Asia into Europe.</b>

Health officials fear it will mutate, become easily transmitted among humans and spread rapidly around the world, killing tens of millions of people.

If this happens, governments and experts agree it will crash economies, damage industry and transform entire societies as they hunker down to cope with the damage. Officials also agree that no country is adequately prepared for such a disaster.

"We have done much to plan for a pandemic, but planning alone is not enough," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters.

"Plans must be tested and improved upon. To that end, the administration will conduct an exercise on pandemic preparations and response this Saturday morning from 8 a.m. until noon. This will involve top Cabinet and other government officials, and will be conducted here at the White House."

The White House gave no details on what the exercise would include. A simple tabletop exercise is an analysis of an emergency scenario that resembles a board game that is designed to elicit possible solutions.

The virus is known to have infected just 135 people since 2003 but has killed more than half of them. World health experts are worried about how affected nations can even keep track of the spread of the virus, let alone battle it.

LOOKING FOR FUNDS

President George W. Bush has asked Congress to allocate $7.1 billion to fund his administration's bird flu plan, but no measure has passed.

Congress has been working to approve the funds before recessing this month for a month-long winter break.

But conservative Republicans have been alarmed by deficit spending made worse with huge costs ahead for rebuilding the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit last August.

"We don't want to walk away having done nothing. But you don't necessarily throw $7 billion at it," House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, a California Republican, told reporters.

Democrats have countered that the $6 billion being spent each month to wage war in Iraq is not being offset with domestic spending cuts and neither should avian flu and hurricane aid money.

California Democrats Tom Lantos and Nancy Pelosi said they would introduce "comprehensive" bird flu legislation in the House of Representatives that would include funding for Asian countries. "Our bill will dramatically scale up our nation's efforts to stop an avian flu pandemic at its roots," Lantos said in a statement.

The U.S. government is working to stockpile antiviral drugs, but it will take years to make and buy enough and there are questions about how effective they can be against a pandemic flu.

The U.S. plan also calls for accelerated vaccine development, but better vaccine facilities will take years to build and depend almost entirely on private companies.

Public health experts say little has been done to address more immediate issues such as a lack of hospital space, basic supplies and planning for school closings and workplace absences.

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<B><font size=+1 color=purple><center>World Bank bird flu aid seen ready by January </font>

08.12.05 11.20am
<A href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10359007">nzherald.co.uk</a></center>


WASHINGTON - The World Bank is likely to approve a US$300 million ($423.31 million) to US$500 million line of credit to help countries deal with bird flu before a global summit in Beijing on January 17-18. </b>

The proposed financing is currently awaiting a decision by World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz before it goes to the bank's board of member countries for approval.

The funding is seen as pivotal to global efforts to tackle a possible pandemic of the H5N1 avian flu virus, which has infected 130 people in five Asian countries, killing 69 of them.

Jim Adams, the bank's vice president for operations policy and country services, said World Bank teams were already in Turkey, Vietnam, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan to develop bird flu programmes for when the funds are available - either through the bank or other development agencies.

"They have asked us to come out and develop a programme, and normally that would lead to a request for funding, but I don't want to make decisions for them," Adams said.

"We feel we have a template, or menu of items, which we are sitting down with governments and asking them where they need the most help," he added.

Adams said plans for a separate multi-donor trust fund for bird flu were moving forward and discussions on its financing were currently underway with European donors, ahead of a formal pledging session in Beijing.

The World Bank has earmarked a US$1 billion global war chest for bird flu, including its own credit facility. It has estimated that a flu pandemic lasting a year could cost the global economy up to US$800 billion.

Adams said risks posed by bird flu were "very much on the table now" and the conference in Beijing, a few months after the first summit in Geneva, would reinforce global awareness.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu is endemic in poultry in parts of Asia. Human cases remain relatively rare, but there are fears that the virus could mutate into a form that passes easily from person to person and causing a pandemic in which millions could die.

Ukraine is the latest country to detect a virulent strain of avian flu in birds at the weekend.

"People are very alert to the problem," Adams said. "East Asia was sensitive because they went through SARS and there is a recognition of the economic impact, but what we are seeing is a fairly broad recognition that this is a problem that has to be managed," he added.

In Beijing, Adams said agencies at the forefront of bird flu wanted to create a "credible" sense of the risks and challenges that lie ahead.

"We don't want to become fear-mongers, but the development challenge is there," he said, adding it was essential that surveillance systems were in place to prevent the virus from spreading quickly.

Adams said it was important that a certain amount of the financial help offered to especially poor countries was in the form of grants, so it did not burden their budgets.

"We are willing to lend, but we also see the importance of mobilizing a maximum amount of grant funding," he added.

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<B><center>AMA challenges Minister's bird flu hospitals claim

December 8 2005
<A href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200512/s1526293.htm">ABCNews online</a></center>

<font size=+1 color=red>The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has disputed claims that Victoria's hospitals could cope with 25,000 flu patients.</font>

Health Minister Bronwyn Pike has released the latest details of the state's preparedness for an influenza pandemic.

Ms Pike says Victoria's public hospitals are geared to handle 25,000 patients.</b>

Victorian AMA president Mark Yates says hospitals would struggle with that many people, even over several years.

He says it would require huge changes to the hospital system.

"I don't think that either any of the doctors, apart from those who are in a management level or some of the visiting medical staff, are really prepared or organised for that," he said.

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>HHS Releases Checklist to Help Businesses Prepare for a Pandemic</font>

Wednesday December 7, 6:32 pm ET
<A href="http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/051207/dcw060.html?.v=28">biz.yahoo.com</a></center>

WASHINGTON, Dec. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- To help businesses develop specific plans to protect employees and maintain operations during a pandemic, HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt, joined by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, released a "Business Pandemic Influenza Checklist" today. The checklist was presented at a Business Roundtable meeting with chief executive officers of leading companies in Washington, DC.</b>

"In the event of a pandemic, planning by business leaders will be critical to protecting employees' health, limiting the negative economic impact and ensuring the continued delivery of essential services like food, medicine and power," Secretary Leavitt said. "I look forward to involving businesses of all sizes in pandemic planning and integrating their plans into state and federal efforts."

The new checklist identifies specific activities that companies can do now to prepare for a pandemic and will also be helpful in other types of emergencies. Developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the checklist suggests companies plan how they would forecast employee absences during a pandemic; disseminate information to employees; establish flexible work sites; and establish policies for employees who have been exposed, are suspected to be ill or become ill at the worksite. Activities are broken into broader categories for action, including:

* Plan for the impact of a pandemic on a business;
* Plan for the impact of a pandemic on employees and customers;
* Establishment of policies to be implemented during a pandemic;
* Allocation of resources to protect employees and customers during a
pandemic;
* Communication and education to employees; and
* Coordination with external organizations and communities.

Today's release of the business checklist is one part of overall Administration planning to increase pandemic preparedness. In order to safeguard against the threat of a pandemic and mitigate the effects should one occur, President Bush outlined a coordinated government strategy that includes the establishment of a new International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza, stockpiling of vaccines and antiviral medications, expansion of early-warning systems domestically and abroad and new initiatives for local and state level preparedness.

Earlier this week, Secretary Leavitt met with senior officials from all 50 states to begin preparing for a series of in-state pandemic-planning summits to be held in every state over the next several months. He also issued a "State and Local Health Department Planning Checklist for Public Health Roles and Responsibilities." It summarizes key planning activities to be undertaken by the public health system of each state in collaboration with partners. Additional checklists to help families, schools, the travel industry and faith-based and community organizations increase their preparedness will be issued in coming weeks.

A copy of the business checklist and other pandemic planning information is available online at http://www.pandemicflu.gov.

Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.

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<center>

Bump! The darn thread still won't
show up on the main board - untill
it's added to.....</center>

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>China reports fifth bird-flu case</font>

From: Agence France-Presse From correspondents in Beijing
December 09, 2005
<A href="http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,17511225-23109,00.html">www.news.com.au</a></center>

A 31-year-old farmer has been confirmed as China's fifth human case of bird flu after she fell sick following contact with dead birds.

However, she has since recovered.</b>

"The Ministry of Health reported on December 8 that a pneumonia case of unknown reason in Heishan county, Liaoning province, has been confirmed as deadly H5N1 bird flu," the Xinhua news agency said.

The woman surnamed Liu, from Heishan county, was treated for pneumonia after contact with dead birds in the area, which was hit by an outbreak of avian flu, Xinhua said.

She fell ill on October 30 with high fever and pneumonia-like symptoms that became more serious, Xinhua said. Following treatment at a hospital, the woman recovered and was discharged on November 29, it said.

China's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention tested samples from the woman many times, but the samples came back negative.

They conducted another test on December 5, which confirmed she was positive for the lethal H5N1 strain that has claimed almost 70 lives in Asia since late 2003, the agency said.
Local health officials put family and friends who had contact with her under strict medical surveillance but they did not show any signs of the virus and have been released, Xinhua said.

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>Ukraine Says Bird Flu Strain Found in Crimea Dangerous to Humans</font>

Created: 08.12.2005 18:46 MSK (GMT +3)
<A href="http://mosnews.com/news/2005/12/08/birdflucrim.shtml">MosNews</a></center>

Ukraine said on Thursday it had detected the highly pathogenic type of bird flu that is dangerous to humans, the strain known as H5N1.</b>

The outbreak was located in several villages in the Crimean peninsula where about 2,500 birds died within hours. Local residents said signs of the illness were detected in September and no action had been taken.

“We have information that the strain H5N1 was detected,” Vyacheslav German, deputy director of the state institute for biotechnology, was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Ukraine sent suspect tissue from birds for laboratory tests to an institute in Russia. Officials said the strain was the same recently found in neighboring Romania and in Russia.

President Viktor Yushchenko has announced a state of emergency in affected areas, a measure that the Emergency Ministry said was key to stopping the spread of the disease to other parts of the country. The Emergency Ministry, which is overseeing measures to contain the outbreak, is carrying out a cull of domestic poultry in the affected areas on the Crimean peninsular in the Black Sea.

So far its staff has seized more than 29,000 birds in house-to-house checks in villages sealed off by an exclusion zone.

H5N1 is endemic in poultry in parts of Asia where it has killed almost 70 people. Experts fear the virus could mutate into a form which can be transmitted easily from person to person, risking a pandemic in which millions could die.

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I do believe that there is a "Credibility Gap" beginning to assert it's self here - one one hand they say that the H5N1 in the Crimea is of the Deadly Asian H5N1-type. Then their head Honcho comes out and states that there is no danger form the bug.....



<B><font size=+1 color=green><center>Verbytskyi Denies People Risk Contracting Bird Flu In Ukraine</font>
December 8 2005
<A href="http://www.ukranews.com/cgi-bin/openarticle.pl?lang=eng&id=693017&lenta=po">Ukrainian News Agency</a></center>

Petro Verbytskyi, the former head of the State Department of Veterinary Medicine, has said that there is no risk of people contracting the bird flu virus in Ukraine.

Verbytskyi was speaking at a press conference.</b>

"The risk of people contracting the virus in Ukraine, it is zero," he said.

Verbytskyi also noted that the H5N1 strain of the virus cannot be transmitted from people to people.

According to him, clear information has been released recently stating that the H5N1 strain of the virus can mutate, but no case of infection of humans has been registered in the world, except in Southeast Asia.

As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the Central Veterinary Medicine Laboratory in Kyiv confirmed on December 7 that the dead birds in the villages of Akymivka (Nyzhniohirskyi district of Crimea) and Dmytriivka (Sovietskyi district) had the H5 strain of the bird flu virus.

Cases of mass deaths of domestic birds were discovered in several more villages in the Sovietskyi (in the villages of Chornozemne, Dmytrievka, and Krasnoflotske), Krasnoperekopsk (Voika), and Nyzhniohirskyi (Akymivka) districts of the Crimea on December 6 and 7.

Earlier, hotbeds of the bird flu virus had been discovered in Nekrasovka (Sovietskyi district), Zavit-Leninskyi, Pushkine (both in the Dzhankoi district), Izobilne, and Omelianivka, (both in the Nyzhniohirsk district).

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<B><font size=+1 color=blue><center>UPDATE 1-Bird flu seen posing $675 bln threat to US economy</font>

Thu Dec 8, 2005 1:06 PM ET
<A href="http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=governmentFilingsNews&storyID=URI:urn:newsml:reuters.com:20051208:MTFH34654_2005-12-08_18-06-00_N08320332:1">www.todayreuters.com</a></center>

WASHINGTON, Dec 8 (Reuters) - A human outbreak of bird flu in the United States could deal a $675 billion blow to the economy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said on Thursday, citing a new study by the Congressional Budget Office.</b>

Frist said the study assumed a 2.5 percent mortality rate, that 30 percent of the population would be infected and that employees would miss three weeks of work.

"A nearly $700 billion hit to our economy -- almost half of which is brought on by fear and confusion -- gives us every reason to begin preparing a prescription and implementing a course of action today," Frist said in a statement.

The economic loss estimated by the study would amount to a 5 percent reduction in gross domestic product, he said.

Frist released the statement at a National Press Club appearance to discuss the bird flu threat.

The H5N1 avian influenza virus is spreading steadily among poultry, pushing westward out of Asia into Europe.

Health officials fear it will mutate, become easily transmitted among humans and spread rapidly around the world, killing tens of millions of people.

The virus is known to have infected just 135 people since 2003 but has killed more than half of them.

President George W. Bush has asked Congress to allocate $7.1 billion to fund his administration's bird flu plan, but no measure has passed.

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<B><font size=+1 color=brown><center>University Helps Responders Prepare For Possible Avian Flu</font>

created: 12/8/2005 11:02:28 AM
updated: 12/8/2005 11:03:07 AM
<A href="http://www.ksdk.com/news/education_article.aspx?storyid=89033">KSDK Newschannel.com</a></center>

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Public health officials and first responders will have a chance to learn Thursday about how to deal with the avian flu, if an outbreak should occur in St. Louis.</b>

Two conferences are being held at Saint Louis University Thursday morning to prepare them.

Police chiefs, firefighters and others will review how to handle a first response. Presentations also will educate health officials about factors to consider if a pandemic ever strikes.

U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway will deliver opening remarks.

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<B><font size=+1 color=red><center>Flu Pandemic Could Cause Recession, Kill 2 Million: CBO </font>

December 8 2005
By Rex Nutting
<A href="http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20051208\ACQDJON200512081350DOWJONESDJONLINE000947.htm&selected=9999&selecteddisplaysymbol=9999&StoryTargetFrame=_top&mkt=WORLD&chk=unchecked&lang=&link=&headlinereturnpage=http://www.international.na">www.nasdaq.com</a></center>

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) - A severe pandemic of avian flu would hit the United States hard, killing 2 million Americans and pushing the economy into a major recession, the Congressional Budget Office estimated Thursday. </b>

In a severe outbreak, about 90 million Americans would get sick, CBO said. Health-care facilities would be overwhelmed. Schools would close. Retail trade would suffer. Air travel would fall by two-thirds.

A milder bout of flu would kill 100,000 and knock about 1.5 percentage points off growth, but not cause a recession, the agency said in a report to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

The agency underlined that such pandemics are unpredictable.

"A substantial amount of uncertainty is associated with any forecast of the effects of an avian flu pandemic," the CBO said.

The avian flu is not transmitted from human to human, but it could mutate to do so. The H5N1 flu stain is extremely virulent, with death rates of more than 50% among humans who have contracted the disease from close association with poultry.

"A highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza has not been known before to spread so widely and so rapidly," CBO said.

The odds of an influenza pandemic in any given year are about 3% to 4%, CBO said, looking at episodes back to 1700. There were three global pandemics in the 20th century.

If a pandemic similar in scope to the 1918-19 Spanish flu outbreak were to occur, 30% of Americans would become ill and 2.5% of those would die, the CBO said. U.S. output would be reduced by about 5%, which would be the worst rececession since 1980 and about average for recessions since World War II.

"The most important effects would be a sharp decline in demand as people avoided shopping malls, restaurants and other public spaces, and a shrinking of labor supply as workers became ill or stayed home out of fear or to take care of others who were sick," CBO said.

CBO estimated those who got ill and survived would miss an average of 3 weeks of work.

Under the severe scenario, demand in most industries would drop by about 10%. Sales at arts, entertainment, recreation and food services sectors would plunge by 80%. Transportation services, such as air, rail and transit, would fall by 67%.

Demand for health care would rise by 15%, CBO said.

In the long term, the economy would recover to its previous growth trend, CBO said. "The economy's response to natural disasters demonstrates that people can adapt to extreme hardship and businesses can find ways to work around obstructions," the agency said.

While some scientists fear that the avian flu could be as deadly or deadlier than the 1918-19 flu, which killed 50 million worldwide and 675,000 in the United States, most pandemics in recorded history have been milder, with mortality rates of 0.1%, more similar to the 1957-58 and 1968-69 pandemics.

In the milder scenario, the economic effects might not be distinguishable from the normal ups and downs in the economy, CBO said.

Under the mild scenario, demand in most industries would fall by about 3%, with a 17% decline in travel and a 20% drop in recreation and restaurants.

Shakey, there's so much to read that the thread went off the main page while I was reading.


Ah... bump.

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