Swine flu 'could kill millions unless rich nations give £900m'

[robcon]

Source: Guradian (UK)

The swine flu pandemic could kill millions and cause anarchy in the world's poorest nations unless £900m can be raised from rich countries to pay for vaccines and antiviral medicines, says a UN report leaked to the Observer.

The disclosure will provoke concerns that health officials will not be able to stem the growth of the worldwide H1N1 pandemic in developing countries. If the virus takes hold in the poorest nations, millions could die and the economies of fragile countries could be destroyed.

Health ministers around the globe were sent the warning on Thursday in a report on the costs of averting a humanitarian disaster in the next few months. It comes as officials inside the World Health Organisation, the UN's public health body, said they feared they would not be able to raise half that amount because of the global downturn.

Gregory Hartl of WHO said the report required an urgent response from rich nations. "There needs to be recognition that the whole world is affected by this pandemic and the chain is only as strong as its weakest link. We have seen how H1N1 has taken hold in richer nations and in the southern hemisphere. We have been given fair warning and must act soon," he said.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/20/swine-flu-costs-un-report

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This is further alarmism about the relatively 'average' H1N1 (swine) flu.

It also adds the emotional blackmail of 900 miilion pounds transfer from richer nations to poorer nations.

[barbtries]

1. or maybe it's the truth

this flu is a reality.

[uppityperson]

22. Places where there is starvation and illness already, I can see it being a big problem

Famine, pestilance, disease, add on another illness and a lot could die. Like always.

I've been watching this flu closely since it became apparent there was something going on earlier this yr and am on the fence. It could develop into something really nasty, or could peter out. Part of the problem is not knowing so having to be prepared, added onto the "wolf" calling and general distrust that has built up over the last 8 yrs, makes it hard to predict, hard to know who to trust.

[GreenStormCloud]

2. Didn't we go through this a few years ago with Bird Flu? N/T

[Deja Q]

3. Who's rich, again?

Bill Gates alone could go 900 million; that's pennies to him. He's a philanthropist who otherwise slashes jobs and wages.


/cynic

[Fearless]

21. Says the person with the apple logo...

:rofl:

[shadowknows69]

4. Put the wars on hold for 24 hours. That oughta be about 900 mIllion.

[no_hypocrisy]

5. A couple of thoughts

The rich can just as easily die from the ravages of swine flu, possibly transmitted from the "not rich" that they decided to ignore and abandon.

Giving 900 million pounds for swine flu prevention and treatment doesn't necessarily mean that the funds will be so allocated and utilized by governments once provided.

Can the U.N. fill the gap?

There are no easy answers.

[ixion]

6. If it's really that dire, the pharma cos should release the vaccine

for free, or very nearly so.

To say: cough up 900m or die sounds like extortion to me.

[UpInArms]

7. my sentiments exactly

:hi:

[Robb]

14. Yes and no. If you read the article

...it discusses how the majority of the funding is needed for infrastructure (utilities and what-not) and education/distribution. Pandemic response plans, at least in this country, are all about "how do you run things when no one can gather together"?

It's a complicated thing to work out, even in "first world" nations where all the phones work.

[dbonds]

20. My first thought was a Dr Evil plot.

But if this is a danger, we should donate medicine and doctors, not money.

[mwb970]

8. It does seem to exaggerate the threat.

Especially after the scares over SARS, alar, killer bees, avian flu, and a hundred other things that never happened.

Oh, and Obama's going to take all our guns.

[madrchsod]

9. killer bees?

or

[Aragorn]

10. millions could die from meteor strike

is MORE valid because we already know H1N1 is no more fatal than average flu, and probably less so in fact. Anything to make a buck. It's called capitalism.

[mbperrin]

11. Give us money or somebody dies sounds like a hostage situation

to me.

Just more delicately phrased by Big Pharma in the past. I mean, these are the same folks that "somehow" put a live avian virus into a vaccine.

No worries, though, they're checking on it.

Meanwhile, keep the bucks rolling in!

[24601]

27. You captured my 1st impression spot on. Perhaps we could make

some $ for vaccines by cutting the pay & perks of top UN officials. Small price to pay if it saves just a few kids....

[Bragi]

28. I'm sure the neocons would agree with you

They hate the UN and all multinational institutions. Get rid of organizations like the WHO, and no-one will raise as much as a peep about the effect of any disease on impoverished nations.

[blm]

29. So now you target UN as a problem along with your anti-ACORN posts...and show up to protect FOX and

downplay the Bushes' 3 decade role in AQ Khan's network on other threads.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. The U.S. is no longer "rich"

With almost http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/">$12 trillion in debt, and a GDP of http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/gdpnewsrelease.htm">$14.1 trillion we are, as a nation, in bad shape. Of course there are citizens and corporations in this country who collectively made off with trillions.

[elocs]

13. "Could". "Could" covers a lot of ground. I "could" win the lottery.

I "could" find a fiver on the sidewalk today. I "could" click on "Post message" when I finish typing. Did I?

[xchrom]

15. indeed -- if the rich nations would get serious about helping

poorer naions -- and vice versa -- build, and train the staff for infrastructure -- a near revolution for humanity could happen.

[midnight]

16. The whole perception of this flu triage is very over the top.

Do what we say or else. In Wisconsin, I listened to a doctor speaking to heads of agencies, and advising them on what to prepare for this fall. This doctor was not adamant about anything, because there is only a moderate pandemic per the warning being given since last spring by WHO, and there are no signs of mutation, which they were concerned about developing from last spring either. So I wonder who is protecting the manufactures of the vaccine? We know Baccus, via a new health insurance bill written to mandate collection of coverage,is protecting the insurance racket.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

23. The government has protected vaccine manufacturers through the Vaccine Compensation Fund.

[Subdivisions]

17. Extortion. Big Pharma: Give us a billion bucks or the poor

in third-world countries die.

[Robb]

19. RTFA. nt

[jwirr]

18. There are four cases in my daughters hometown and most of the

workers in her day life are from a town with a lot more cases. For normal persons this may not be a disaster but my daughter is severely disabled living in a foster home where the other occupant is even sicker. We are keeping her home from the DAC until the threat is gone and she is not getting any shots because she cannot handle the regular flu shot.

It was a family decision made by an RN, a respiratory therapist and her younger sister who was in Cancun when this all started and myself a social worker. We are taking no chances with her life.

[Duer 157099]

24. Couldn't that headline just as easily be: "Lack of adequate health care will kill millions of

...Americans unless (so-and-so) gives (x-amount of money)"

True in both cases.

[JonQ]

25. Yeah sure, this isn't a repeat from last year

or the year before that, or before that (different flus, same claims).

And what guarantee is there that they will even take the vaccines? I remember we were working towards curing polio, giving away free medicine and all that. And it was going pretty well until they decided it was evil magic and refused to take it (and surprisingly polio then made a comeback, alot of wasted effort there).

[Lost-in-FL]

26. Paid advertisement brought to you by pfzer, novartis, j&j, Bristol-Myers, etc. nt