Reply #18: In terms of preparedness

[steven johnson]

Preparaton for the expected swine flu cases is detailed in today's Bloomberg:

Swine Flu Emergency Caused By New Variant of Old Bug
By John Lauerman and Jason Gale
April 26 (Bloomberg)


The CDC is conducting studies now that might show whether seasonal vaccination might protect people against swine flu. It’s also possible that people who were vaccinated in the 1976 swine flu outbreak, which many flu experts believed was the beginning of a pandemic at the time, are protected, he said.
Vaccine makers are taking the initial steps toward making shots against swine flu. Baxter International Inc., a maker of both seasonal and pandemic vaccines, has requested samples of the swine virus for laboratory testing, said Christopher Bona, a spokesman for Deerfield, Illinois-based Baxter. GlaxoSmithKline Plc, based in London, has had conversations with WHO’s flu division that’s responsible for distributing flu virus samples to drugmakers, said Deborah Alspach, a spokeswoman.
Roche Holding AG, of Basel, has an ample supply of Tamiflu, which can reduce the symptoms of swine flu. Roche has donated a “Rapid Response Stockpile” of 5 million treatment courses to the WHO that’s on 24-hour stand-by to be sent around the world, said Terence Hurley, a spokesman for the company. No request has been made to deploy the stockpile, he said in an email.
Glaxo also has ample supplies of its inhaled Relenza antiviral, which also appears to be effective against the swine flu in CDC tests, Alspach said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aD0VK0_oNmw4&refer=home