VIPs to get flu jabs
What a suprise!
By LINCOLN WRIGHT
04sep05
THE Prime Minister and his Cabinet head a list of people with preferential access to life-saving, anti-viral shots if an avian flu pandemic hits Australia.
A leaked Health Department document details the controversial priority list for the shots, devised by a senior medical committee.
Anti-virals ease the effects of the flu, but Australia's stocks only run to 3.8 million doses and they are very expensive to make.
Also on the priority list are state Premiers, senior bureaucrats, judges and funeral parlour workers.
Others to be protected first will include police and workers in Australia's health services, in water and power, telecommunications, sewerage, and those making vaccines.
And Australian Broadcasting Corporation staff are on the list.
Australia's Chief Medical Officer, Professor John Horvath, said the list was devised to ensure people who carried out critical functions were protected.
"The nation's leaders are the most important of all," Dr Horvath said.
"At the end of the day, there's got to be someone to make the decisions.
"And the media, but not all of the media, will be terribly important in the event of a pandemic."
Australia's military leaders had their own system to protect themselves, Dr Horvath said.
Medical officials fear the deadly avian flu virus now spreading through the world could mutate and infect humans, sparking a pandemic -- a deadly global infection without an immediate cure.
A new variant of the virus, H5N1, has killed more than 50 people in Asia.
The World Health Organisation estimates up to 100 million could die in a pandemic, while in Australia, more than 2.5 million would get the flu and up to 13,000 would die.
The anti-viral drugs are the first line of defence before vaccines can be developed.
"In the absence of vaccines, anti-virals are the only medical intervention for providing protection against disease and some therapeutic benefit in those who are ill," the pandemic action plan states.
Australia has the largest stock of anti-viral drugs in the world, but still has only about 3.8 million doses.
It is estimated they could protect Federal and State Governments and a million essential workers for six weeks. Australia could use three types of anti-viral drugs: Tamiflu, Relenza and Symmetrel.
By LINCOLN WRIGHT
04sep05
THE Prime Minister and his Cabinet head a list of people with preferential access to life-saving, anti-viral shots if an avian flu pandemic hits Australia.
A leaked Health Department document details the controversial priority list for the shots, devised by a senior medical committee.
Anti-virals ease the effects of the flu, but Australia's stocks only run to 3.8 million doses and they are very expensive to make.
Also on the priority list are state Premiers, senior bureaucrats, judges and funeral parlour workers.
Others to be protected first will include police and workers in Australia's health services, in water and power, telecommunications, sewerage, and those making vaccines.
And Australian Broadcasting Corporation staff are on the list.
Australia's Chief Medical Officer, Professor John Horvath, said the list was devised to ensure people who carried out critical functions were protected.
"The nation's leaders are the most important of all," Dr Horvath said.
"At the end of the day, there's got to be someone to make the decisions.
"And the media, but not all of the media, will be terribly important in the event of a pandemic."
Australia's military leaders had their own system to protect themselves, Dr Horvath said.
Medical officials fear the deadly avian flu virus now spreading through the world could mutate and infect humans, sparking a pandemic -- a deadly global infection without an immediate cure.
A new variant of the virus, H5N1, has killed more than 50 people in Asia.
The World Health Organisation estimates up to 100 million could die in a pandemic, while in Australia, more than 2.5 million would get the flu and up to 13,000 would die.
The anti-viral drugs are the first line of defence before vaccines can be developed.
"In the absence of vaccines, anti-virals are the only medical intervention for providing protection against disease and some therapeutic benefit in those who are ill," the pandemic action plan states.
Australia has the largest stock of anti-viral drugs in the world, but still has only about 3.8 million doses.
It is estimated they could protect Federal and State Governments and a million essential workers for six weeks. Australia could use three types of anti-viral drugs: Tamiflu, Relenza and Symmetrel.
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