The 2009 Influenza Pandemic: An Overview

• Main Authors: Lister, Sarah A., Redhead, C. S.
• Other Authors: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WASHINGTON DC CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Administration and Management; Government and Political Science; Medicine and Medical Research; *UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT; *MANAGEMENT PLANNING AND CONTROL; *EPIDEMICS; *LOCAL GOVERNMENT; *STATE GOVERNMENT; *INFLUENZA; *RESPONSE; *PREPARATION; INFLUENZA VIRUS; VACCINES; INFECTIOUS DISEASE TRANSMISSION; IMMUNIZATION; BORDER SECURITY; TRAVEL; FEDERAL BUDGETS; GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION; PUBLIC HEALTH; *H1N1 INFLUENZA; *PANDEMICS; *WHO(WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION); DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY; DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES; CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS; ANTIVIRAL DRUGS; SWINE FLU; STAFFORD ACT; CUSTOMS; DISEASE SURVEILLANCE; VACCINE DEVELOPMENT; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA506444; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA506444

On June 11, 2009, in response to the global spread of a new strain of H1N1 influenza ("flu"), the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak to be an influenza pandemic, the first since 1968. WHO said that the pandemic declaration was based on the geographic spread of the new virus, not on increasing severity of the illnesses it causes. Officials now believe the outbreak began in Mexico in March, or perhaps earlier. The novel "H1N1 swine flu" was first identified in California in late April. Health officials quickly linked the new virus to many of the illnesses in Mexico. Since then, cases have been reported around the world. On July 16, WHO said it was suspending worldwide case counts of illnesses caused by the virus, and that it no longer wanted member nations to report individual cases. WHO said that tracking in this way was no longer helpful in monitoring the pandemic, but was unnecessarily burdensome for reporting countries. In the final WHO case count of July 6, almost 100,000 cases, and more than 400 deaths, had been reported on all continents but Antarctica. Early in the outbreak, most of the cases were in North America, and then Europe and Asia. This was followed by increasing spread in countries in the Southern Hemisphere during their winter, when flu transmission is more efficient. Transmission continued at low levels in North America throughout the summer. U.S. health officials and others are preparing for a resurgence of infections in the fall, with the onset of cooler temperatures. This report provides a synopsis of key events, actions taken, and authorities invoked by WHO, the U.S. federal government, and state and local governments; discusses the WHO process to determine the phase of a flu pandemic; lists congressional hearings held to date; provides information about appropriations and funding for pandemic flu activities; summarizes U.S. government pandemic flu planning documents; and lists sources for additional information. CRS Report for Congress.