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Nine hajj flu cases so far: Saudi health minister
Riyadh (AFP) Nov 11, 2009 Nine people out of more than half a million who have arrived for the annual hajj pilgrimage have been diagnosed with swine flu, Saudi Health Minister Dr Abdullah al-Rabeeah said on Wednesday. "The situation from the point of health, we are very happy. Out of the 600,000 arriving so far, we have only seen nine suspected cases of A(H1N1), and only two of those are in the hospital," Rabeeah told AFP. "The rest were treated and they were discharged," he said. Rabeeah said that altogether 70 people had died in the kingdom this year from swine flu, none of them pilgrims. The fatalities figure is up from 62 reported at the beginning of November, and the total number of proven cases is about 7,000, the minister said. Concern has mounted about the possibility of a major outbreak of the disease during the hajj, when more than three million Muslims converge on the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in western Saudi Arabia in the second half of November. The Riyadh government has deployed about 20,000 health workers to deal with flu and other health emergencies among pilgrims, Rabeeah said. More than 6,000 deaths from A(H1N1) flu had been reported worldwide as of November 1, according to the World Health Organisation.
Serbia declares swine flu epidemic "By declaring an epidemic we are creating the conditions to start emergency vaccination, among other measures planned to control the outbreak," Health Minister Tomica Milosavljevic told a press conference broadcast on Serbian state television. The vaccination campaign is among the main measures being taken by the ministry, while it will be down to local councils to decide whether to close schools. The first vaccines were expected to be delivered to Serbia by mid-December, local media reported. The decision came as Serbia reported seven deaths linked to swine flu and 261 confirmed cases of people infected with the virus, but the actual number of flu cases is feared to be much higher. On Monday, the education ministry extended autumn school holidays until November 16 in a bid to stop further spread of the flu among the school-aged population. Share This Article With Planet Earth
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No paid sick leave hampering US fight against swine fluWashington (AFP) Nov 10, 2009 Along with scarce vaccine and shrinking stocks of antivirals, the United States faces another enemy in the fight against swine flu: workers who go to work when they're ill because they don't get paid sick leave. The A(H1N1) virus "is causing an emergency for workers and families across the country," Democratic Senator Chris Dodd told a Senate subcommittee hearing Tuesday on paid sick leave ... read more |
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