W.H.O. to Rewrite Rules for Declaring a Pandemic

W.H.O. to Rewrite Rules for Declaring a Pandemic

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Bowing to pressure, the World Health Organization announced Friday that it would rewrite its rules for alerting the world to new diseases, meaning the swine flu circling the globe will probably never be declared a full-fledged pandemic.

Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the deputy director general making the W.H.O. announcement, said that he could not predict exactly what the new rules would be but that criteria would include a “substantial risk of harm to people,” not just the geographic spread of a relatively benign virus.

The six-point system was created in 2005 when the threat was H5N1 avian flu, which has a fatality rate of about 60 percent. But the system does not take into account a virus’s lethality, and in the current outbreak, some countries have complained that the warning system created panic and pressure for border closings, even though the strain was less deadly.

Asked if the W.H.O. could damage its credibility by changing the rules in mid-outbreak, Dr. Fukuda said: “There’s nothing like reality for telling you whether something is working or not. Rigidly adhering to something that is not working would not be very helpful.”

Source: www.nytimes.com...

[edit on 23-5-2009 by rapinbatsisaltherage]

So, Geneva, Dr. Fukuda also added:

“We’re trying to walk a fine line between not raising panic and not being complacent.”

Is it bad to think people should be extra cautious? The virus has been confirmed in 42 countries. Hasn't killed a lot of people though, so I can see where they're coming from.

I wish they would sort this out.

I have said from the start that this flu is not a problem - well, except for the people who died, for whom I am sorry.

Originally posted by spellbound
I wish they would sort this out.

I have said from the start that this flu is not a problem - well, except for the people who died, for whom I am sorry.

Yeah, it is sad, but I agree with you. More people die from the regular flu and TB.

reply to post by rapinbatsisaltherage


The real question is did they die from swine flu?
Its interesting how the medical fraternity claims lack of knowledge with things such as cancer; there is still the outcry for millions in donations for more research. How many years of resaerch and Billions of dollars do they actually need to make ground.
More interesting is that Swine Flu has just made an appearence, yet they know it can be treated with Tamiflu Meds, know how to test for its presence, have even installed infared cameras at airports for fever detection.
They seem to kno a hell of a lot about this one ....and so soon!?
Idont see any pigs here........I just smell a rat

Glad to see they are going to rewrite the rules for a better understanding.

Let us hope they get it right for when H1N1 mutates into something worse and reemerges onto the scene in the future.

reply to post by KRISKALI777


Sadly, it is about rich people, people who think they will inherit the world (not those people, thanfkully).

Swine flu was never a big deal... The media hype surrounding it was uncalled for...

Perhaps we should be looking at what the media WASN'T reporting during that whole week...

Anyone else notice that during that week, the stock market climbed significantly, even though every bit of economic news that came out indicated things were to get worse?

Swine flu isn't the story here.... its something else that we're not meant to find out.

reply to post by whahh

Yes, there is an agenda - the rich people will inherit the world, for a little while, then the Lord Jesus will take them down. WOO HOO.

reply to post by whahh


Yes, Swine Flu was a confusion tactic used by the media to keep the public's eyes off the real matters at hand.

Truly said-

God forbid we go to Level 6 and close trade, airports, summer travel, etc., when the economy is bouncing back just to prevent a pandemic (which already exists, and is expected to mutate...?)

It's much more important to know that Congress is taking the summer off and Obama and Cheney are debating Gitmo.

IMO the economy is bouncing up on expectations of multiple billions for the pharmas and insurance companies who will exploit this or any illness to line their pockets. We just pledged a cool billion for a vaccine- too bad I don't own Novartis or GSK shares....