public health officials

The Bush administration warned Monday that bird flu will probably arrive in the United States this year. Officials announced plans to test 75,000 to 100,000 birds for early signs of the disease. The most likely route into the country for the disease is believed to be along the Pacific flyway, the path followed by migratory birds as they cross into the country. The flyway stretches the length of the West coast from Alaska to California.

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said that the …

French pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Aventis said that early stage trials of its experimental avian flu vaccine have produced promising results, triggering a good immune response in trial participants. The latest version of the vaccine appears to work well at low dosages, a sign that plans to stretch the available supply developed by public health officials could work. Officials admit that the vaccine will need to be tweaked to offer protection against a new strain of the H5N1 virus if a …

In recent years, drug-resistant bacteria such as the infamous MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) have become a serious issue for many hospitals, causing some public health officials to issue ominous warnings about untreatable hospital-acquired infections. A new nanotechnology-based coating developed by AcryMed appears to protect medical devices from MRSA. This week the FDA approved the marketing of a catheter using the coating. AcryMed it says it also plans to license it …

Public health officials are expressing concern that a federal plan to respond to an avian flu outbreak may not do enough to ensure that supplies are available and that local healthcare facilities are able to handle a sharp increase in patients. Michael Osterhom of the Center for Infectious Disease Research at the University of Minnesota says that he is worried about the impact of an outbreak on a global economy.

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A rapid HIV test considered a potential breakthrough by some public health advocates has developed an exceptionally high false-positive rate. According to public health officials in New York, the OraQuick HIV test has produced "hundreds" of false positive results. The news comes as the test awaits approval by the FDA for over-the-counter sale. OraQuick's supporters have argued that wider availability of the test would stem the spread of HIV. Article

Health officials in North Carolina say the state is testing a new disease monitoring system which will allow them to follow conditions in emergency rooms across the state. The system will continuously collect information on patient symptoms at emergency rooms in North Carolina on 24-hour basis. The data will allow public health officials to monitor possible emerging health threats such as an influenza outbreak or other epidemiological events. Emergency rooms will get updates every 15 …

The Department of Health and Human Services is expected to release new details of the administration's plans to respond to the threat of an H5N1 epidemic. HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt returned from a fact-finding trip to Asia on Friday alarmed by the facts that he found. All signs point to a containment strategy, with officials hoping to catch any outbreak on the ground in Asia before it spreads by encouraging local governments to increase transparency and step up efforts to inoculate local …

> You can now read the text of the Department of Justice's opinion on HIPAA, which says the government can't prosecute provider employees who break privacy laws. Story (pdf)

> There are strong indications from Albany that New York lawmakers will pass an infection reporting law. Story

> St. Vincent's Medical Center said it …