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U.S. Has No Avian Flu Vaccine: Chertoff
U.S. Has No Avian Flu Vaccine: Chertoff
WASHINGTON, March 21, 2006 (UPI) -- The U.S. government still has no vaccines to fight any avian flu outbreak, the head of the Department of Homeland Security said Monday.
Secretary for Homeland Security Michael Chertoff cited a potential avian flu outbreak in the United States as one example of a nontraditional threat during a keynote speech at the International Association of Fire Fighters legislative conference in Washington Monday. But he also acknowledged that the U.S. government did not yet have a vaccine to fight it, CongressDaily reported.
Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said during a cross-country tour to promote local preparedness for a potential pandemic that a vaccine could take at least six months to develop once the virus is transmitted from human to human.
Until then, "we'll be dependent upon traditional public health measures to contain and limit it," Leavitt said of the virus. He also urged Americans to stockpile emergency supplies to deal with a bird flu pandemic, CongressDaily said.
WASHINGTON, March 21, 2006 (UPI) -- The U.S. government still has no vaccines to fight any avian flu outbreak, the head of the Department of Homeland Security said Monday.
Secretary for Homeland Security Michael Chertoff cited a potential avian flu outbreak in the United States as one example of a nontraditional threat during a keynote speech at the International Association of Fire Fighters legislative conference in Washington Monday. But he also acknowledged that the U.S. government did not yet have a vaccine to fight it, CongressDaily reported.
Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said during a cross-country tour to promote local preparedness for a potential pandemic that a vaccine could take at least six months to develop once the virus is transmitted from human to human.
Until then, "we'll be dependent upon traditional public health measures to contain and limit it," Leavitt said of the virus. He also urged Americans to stockpile emergency supplies to deal with a bird flu pandemic, CongressDaily said.
