A researcher at the University of Toronto has used modeling software to determine that Tamiflu could cut the number of deaths from an avian flu pandemic by half. Beate Sander says that stockpiling enough of the Roche vaccine to treat 65 percent of the population would be the most cost-effective approach to combating a pandemic, a threat that has been percolating around the globe for several years now. This is the first time disease modeling software has been used to determine the impact of Tamiflu on an outbreak. Taking that approach would save $21 billion in the U.S. compared to no intervention. Sander also notes that adding a variety of measures like closing schools would further reduce a pandemic's impact.
- see the release on the modeling results