Swine flu update with Laurie Garrett and Keith Bradsher
We are continuing our coverage of the swine flu outbreak. The flu started in Mexico, which is reporting over 1600 people believed to have contracted the virus resulting in 103 deaths. The flu has since spread across the United States from New York to California and there are now confirmed cases in Canada and Spain. Across the globe public health officials are swinging into action, spreading the word of hand washing, warning against large public gatherings, stockpiling Tamiflu treatments, and engaging the public. But countries like Hong Kong, who learned their lessons from the SARS scare, are already completely prepared for the possibility of an outbreak and have all their health care infrastructure in place. Keith Bradsher, Hong Kong bureau chief for the New York Times, joins us with a few ideas we can learn from Hong Kong and a look at the global response.
Also joining the discussion is Laurie Garrett, Pulitzer Prize-winning science journalist and writer of two bestselling books, including The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of Balance. Ms. Garrett is now the senior fellow for global health Council on Foreign Relations and is well poised to understand this crisis.
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