"U.S. Flu Outbreak Plan Criticized"

"It Does Not Anticipate Strain on Hospitals, Local Health Officials Say"
Christopher Lee, The Washington Post, February 2, 2008.

Excerpt:

The federal government's voluminous plans for dealing with pandemic flu do not adequately account for the overwhelming strain an outbreak would place on hospitals and public health systems trying to cope with millions of seriously ill Americans, some public health experts and local health officials say.

The Bush administration's plans, which run more than 1,000 pages, contemplate the nightmare medical scenarios that many experts fear, but critics say federal officials have left too much of the responsibility and the cost of preparing to a health-care system that even in normal times is stretched to the breaking point and leaves millions of people without adequate access to care.

Comment: We are spending money on a war against Iraq, which did not represent a real risk, and it is taking the money that should have been spent to beef up the CDC and our medical readiness, which would have been helpful for lots of real risks. Thanks President Bush! JAD