WASHINGTON — Even before it can tally the full cost of post-hurricane reconstruction, the Bush administration is seeking congressional support for an expanded government effort to prepare for a worldwide influenza pandemic.
The Department of Health and Human Services is rushing to complete its first comprehensive plan for coping with a possible flu pandemic, and could release the final version as early as this week. It is expected to be accompanied by a request for several billion dollars in new funding, and Congress appears to be willing to cover at least a portion.
Health authorities are particularly concerned about a virulent strain of avian flu in Asia that has killed several dozen people who handled infected birds. There are signs the virus may now be developing the ability, through mutation, to spread from human to human. It is the mutated form that could cause a pandemic.
The administration's pandemic plan is part of a broader effort to accelerate preparations for a potential health disaster. Conservative estimates of fatalities in a flu pandemic number in the millions worldwide, and in the tens of thousands in the United States.
The government has begun contracting with pharmaceutical makers to develop vaccines targeted at new strains of influenza virus. It has started stockpiling millions of doses of antiviral medicines that could limit symptoms and reduce the chances of spreading the virus. President Bush is pressuring other countries to conduct better surveillance for flu outbreaks, share information more readily and commit to aggressive containment measures.
Still, administration officials cautioned that even perfect planning would only lessen the devastation caused by a pandemic, not prevent it.
Bush's preparedness initiative is being directed by Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, who said that of all the issues within his purview, including hurricane recovery and bioterrorism, the one that keeps him awake at night is influenza.
"It's a world-changing event when it occurs," Leavitt said in an interview. "It reaches beyond health. It affects economies, cultures, politics and prosperity -- not to mention human life, counted by the millions."
Bush has taken up the cause personally, prodding the United Nations to make a priority of preparing for a pandemic and raising the issue in one-on-one discussions with the presidents of Russia and China and the prime minister of Indonesia, where in many parts of the country avian flu is endemic in poultry.
