The World Health Organization is warning governments around the globe that they need to invest another $10 billion if they expect to be able to stockpile enough vaccines to ward off a global bird flu pandemic. The WHO's global plan also calls for a big increase in seasonal flu vaccine production in order to expand vaccine production capacity and long-term R&D efforts to build better pandemic vaccines.
WHO would like to see annual production of seasonal vaccines boosted from 350 million to 560 million doses. And several billion dollars in new investments in R&D would offer the world a reasonable chance of gaining new vaccine protection from bird flu in three to five years.
- here's the report [1] from the Financial Times for more information
Related Articles:
Indonesia agrees to release bird flu data. Report [2]
WHO study points to threats of avian flu. Report [3]
The challenges of infectious disease. Report [4]
Links:
[1] http://www.ft.com/cms/s/7c7b011a-62b2-11db-8faa-0000779e2340.html
[2] http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/indonesia-agrees-to-release-bird-flu-data/2006-08-07
[3] http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/who-study-points-to-threats-of-avian-flu/2006-07-03
[4] http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/2006-mid-atlantic-bio-the-challenges-of-infectious-disease/2006-10-12