{mosimage}Much of yesterday's discussion at the World Health Assembly (WHA) focused on pandemic influenza. Shortly after World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Margaret Chan addressed the assembled delegations, Secretary Leavitt delivered the U.S. statement. Regarding pandemic-influenza preparedness, he emphatically supported the free, open, and unencumbered sharing of viral samples by all nations, and noted that no country can go it alone. Secretary Leavitt also led separate meetings with countries involved in the President’s Malaria Initiative and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
A technical briefing on the sharing of influenza viruses and vaccine preparation took place during the lunch hour at the Assembly. Over 200 people attended. After formal presentations, Dr. Julie Gerberding, Director of the HHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, described the U.S. community-mitigation guidance, including the Pandemic Severity Index. Director-General Chan was among the attendees who picked up all of the 200 available copies of the Interim Pre-Pandemic Planning Guidance: Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation in the United States, which is available on the Internet at the following e-mail address: www.pandemicflu.gov.
