"Deadly new flu strain erupts in Mexico, U.S,"

Reuters has a news alert about the emerging evidence of an H1N1 flu epidemic (i.e. swine flu).

A strain of flu never seen before has killed up to 60 people in Mexico and has also appeared in the United States, where eight people were infected but recovered, health officials said on Friday.

Mexico's government said at least 20 people have died of the disease in central Mexico and that it may also have been responsible for 40 other deaths.

Mexico reported more than 1,000 suspected cases and four possible cases were also seen in Mexicali, right on the border with California.

Comment: The bad news is that this might be the first report of the start of the next flu pandemic. The good news is that the public health officials are now on the alert.

It is really too bad that this problem is occurring on a border that is seeing high levels of illegal immigration and drug traffic. How does one control the importation of a disease when the potential carriers are hiding from the government?

I will point out that there is a very long history of U.S.-Mexican cooperation on border health problems. JAD