Obama: US Taking "All Necessary Precautions" On Swine Flu

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Saturday that the U.S. is taking "all necessary precautions" to be prepared if the swine flu develops into "something worse" and spoke to Mexico's president about how to keep the flu strain from spreading.

Swine flu, or H1N1 flu as the government prefers to call it, has caused only one confirmed death in the United States. But medical authorities fear the flu could become much worse, Obama said, and that's why he has thrown substantial federal resources into the campaign against it.

Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderon spoke for 20 minutes Saturday "to share information about each country's efforts to limit the spread of the 2009 H1N1 flu strain and the importance of close U.S.-Mexican cooperation," the White House said.

A White House official said Calderon had requested the conversation, mainly to ensure continued cooperation between the two countries in combatting the virus. The conversation was friendly and productive, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the White House had not authorized releasing more details.

"This is a new strain of the flu virus, and because we haven't developed an immunity to it, it has more potential to cause us harm," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. "Unlike the various strains of animal flu that have emerged in the past, it's a flu that is spreading from human to human. This creates the potential for a pandemic, which is why we are acting quickly and aggressively."

The virus, which has claimed far more victims in Mexico than elsewhere, has not proved as potent in the U.S. "We cannot know for certain why that is, which is why we are taking all necessary precautions in the event that the virus does turn into something worse," he said.

He recapped his administration's efforts. They include asking schools with confirmed cases of the flu virus to close for up to 14 days; urging employers to let infected workers take all the sick days they need; and reminding Americans to wash their hands often, cover their coughs and stay home if ill.

Obama noted that the flu strain "can be defeated by a course of antiviral treatment that we already have on hand." One-fourth of the nation's 50 million courses of the treatment have been distributed to states, he said.

Obama has asked Congress for $1.5 billion to buy more medicine and equipment if needed.

"It is my greatest hope and prayer that all of these precautions and preparations prove unnecessary," the president said. "I would sooner take action now than hesitate and face graver consequences later."

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On the Net:

White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov

Comments

[dgscol]

The flu is a quick spreader but not a killer. Mexico inflated this into a presumed crisis - possibly to impose martial order. The Obama administration was caught flat-footed and basically lucked out. If it had been a wide-spreading version of Ebola, will would all be doomed. One might question the practice of big farming that can spawn bad bugs, but also ... laboratories produced viruses are suspected in some cases and possibly in this one.

And of course there is all the uninspected food that comes into the country .... now killer soy products from Argentina.

We are all victims of practices that places us directly in the path of harm - there is no security anymore - only reports of victimized people from disease, food-borne pathogens, poison food, and also ... disease. Thousands are dead, and possibly millions have a diminished quality of life.

[TCL58]

China send a plane with medical supplies to help Mexico fight this new virus. So did Spain and Japan.
OBAMA and the USA send "good whishes" and a " polite phone call". Obama's administration "efforts" and the so called"sharing information" amount to ZERO HELP.
Mexico and President Calderón are doing heroic efforts and enforcing very drastic measures to cope with this GLOBAL (not only mexican problem), but the only answer from the north neighbour is the spreading racist and discriminatory attitudes towards mexicans.

Shame on you America.

[wdw505]

you are right we should sell them anti-viral drugs for whatever the going rate is........

[joebftsplk]

As a boomer, I have a long perspective on our society. In my youth, we tried to measure up to our predecessors, while bringing our new insights along with us. We developed our own amusements, rock'n'roll and protest marches and movie stars, but did not confuse them with intellectual or social progress. This, of course, is regarded as naive today, but we got along with our elders, respected them and learned from them -- regardless of how much we disagreed with them. Today, young people do not seem willing to learn from anyone else than each other.

I do wish that today's younger generation would grow up a little more savvy, each thinking for him/herself, and seek the wisdom that comes from a thorough education -- not mere vocational training, like "computer science" or "communications" or "business". Study the humanities, math and science. That's an education. It may be challenging, and not lead you directly into a well-paying job, but it will make your life more fulfilling. And make you a more interesting person.

[joebftsplk]

Sorry, this is not where I intended to log this post. Got flipped around by the website. Luv you all, especially those cute little pigs.

[isis]

I'm glad for the precautions.

[Crissy Patters]

I'm glad we're being proactive and not waiting for the H1N1 to get out of control and decide we have a problem. I know this strand of flu is new and the CDC says our system doesn't have the immune to fight the bug, but what's the big deal, when 36,000 people died last year from the normal flu?

[zaz33]

It seems to me that the regular flu is more dangerous than the swine.

[halconnoche]

Why doesn't this website criticize VP Biden for his reckless comments about this swine flu? Very hypocritical. If Palin had said it you would have put it in as the headline on main page. Biden is a joke.