Enlarge imageWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush asked Congress on Tuesday for $7.1 billion (4 billion pounds) in emergency funding to prepare the United States for a possible pandemic of avian influenza.
The total includes requests of $1.2 billion to make 20 million doses of the current vaccine against H5N1 avian influenza, $2.8 billion to accelerate new flu-vaccine technology and $1 billion to stockpile more antiviral drugs.
The H5N1 avian influenza has so far only infected 121 people and killed 62, but it has spread to poultry flocks across many parts of Asia and into Europe. It is making steady mutations that scientists say could allow it to spread easily from person to person -- which would cause a catastrophic pandemic.
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"To respond to a pandemic we must have emergency plans in place in all 50 states, in every local community. We must ensure that all levels of government are ready to act to contain an outbreak," Bush said.
The world’s have agreed they are unprepared, despite years of warnings, and no one has enough antiviral drugs to treat the number of people likely to become ill in a pandemic. No strongly effective vaccine can be made until a pandemic strain of the illness emerges, because the world relies on decades-old technology to make influenza vaccines.
Bush said he would make a start on preparations and the White House has submitted $7.1 billion request for emergency avian-flu funds to the House of Representatives.
"Our strategy is designed to meet three critical goals: first, we must detect outbreaks that occur anywhere in the world; second, we must protect the American people by stockpiling vaccines and antiviral drugs, and improve our ability to rapidly produce new vaccines against a pandemic strain; and third, we must be ready to respond at the federal, state and local levels in the event that a pandemic reaches our shores," Bush said in a speech at the National Institutes of Health.
"So to meet all our goals I’m requesting a total of $7.1 billion in emergency funding from the United States Congress."
Bush said he was also asking Congress to pass legislation that would reduce liability for vaccine makers who make influenza vaccine. Drug companies have said fear of liability have helped keep them out of the vaccine market.
He said he would try to get more flu drugs added to the 2.3 million treatment courses the United States already has stockpiled. Two drugs -- Roche and Gilead Sciences Inc’s Tamiflu, and GlaxoSmithKline’s Relenza, can help relieve the severest symptoms of avian influenza.
"I’m asking Congress for a billion dollars to stockpile additional antiviral medications so that we have enough on hand to help treat first responders and those on the front lines as well as populations most at risk in the first stages of a pandemic," Bush said.
(With additional reporting by Tabassum Zakaria and Richard Cowan)
