Scientists see this flu strain as relatively mild

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Meanwhile,http://snipurl.com/h579n [boston Herald]Mass. Senate approves pandemic flu prep billBy Associated Press  |   Tuesday, April 28, 2009  |  http://www.bostonherald.com  |  Local PoliticsThe Massachusetts Senate has unanimously passed a pandemic flu preparation bill that has languished in the Legislature before the recent swine flu outbreak.The 36-0 vote today sends the measure to the House. Both branches have taken it up in past years, but have not been able to agree on the details.The new Senate version would allow the public health commissioner — in a public health emergency — to close or evacuate buildings, enter private property for investigations, and quarantine individuals.The measure also requires a registry for volunteers that would be activated in an emergency and establishes fines of up to $1,000 for not complying with local public health orders.Sen. Richard Moore, chair of the Health Care Financing Committee, says the swine flu outbreak provides added impetus to pass the measure.==========http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-sci-swine-reality30-2009apr30,0,3606923.storyScientists see this flu strain as relatively mildGenetic data indicate this outbreak won't be as deadly as that of 1918, or even the average winter.By Karen Kaplan and Alan Zarembo April 30, 2009As the World Health Organization raised its infectious disease alert level Wednesday and health officials confirmed the first death linked to swine flu inside U.S. borders, scientists studying the virus are coming to the consensus that this hybrid strain of influenza -- at least in its current form -- isn't shaping up to be as fatal as the strains that caused some previous pandemics.In fact, the current outbreak of the H1N1 virus, which emerged in San Diego and southern Mexico late last month, may not even do as much damage as the run-of-the-mill flu outbreaks that occur each winter without much fanfare. FOR THE RECORD:Swine flu: An article in Thursday's Section A about the risks posed by swine flu said that in the United States annually "between 5% and 20% of the population becomes ill from the flu and 36,000 people die —a mortality rate of between 0.24% and 0.96%." The correct mortality rate is between 0.06% and 0.24%."Let's not lose track of the fact that the normal seasonal influenza is a huge public health problem that kills tens of thousands of people in the U.S. alone and hundreds of thousands around the world," said Dr. Christopher Olsen, a molecular virologist who studies swine flu at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine in Madison. =====In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.