Are You Prepared for a Swine Flu Outbreak?

On March 18 of this year, the first cases of swine flu began to appear in Mexico City. Though cases of swine flu had presented themselves prior to March of 2009, it was a relatively rare and benign type of flu. In fact, there were only twelve human cases of swine flu in the U.S. from December of 2005 to February of 2009.

The swine flu that has appeared in Mexico is known as an H1N1 strain, making it much easier to pass from person to person. As of April 27, this type of swine flu has grown from a few isolated cases in Mexico City to 26 confirmed swine flu deaths and 1,995 suspected cases. Rising numbers of confirmed cases are also cropping up across the world, including Scotland, the U.S., Spain, and Canada. The number of suspected cases of swine flu is now well into the thousands worldwide, and it has caused such widespread panic that the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down today, largely over fear of a pandemic flu outbreak.

Do you have health insurance? Cover yourself for flu outbreaks. Request a quote here!

Map of the current confirmed deaths (black), confirmed infections (black or red), and suspected infections (orange)

As a result of growing fear across the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control recommended a moratorium on nonessential travel to Mexico "out of an abundance of caution." The CDC directive stems from the fact that flu vaccinations made earlier in the year don't seem to offer protection from the swine flu. It could take as much as five months before the CDC can have a swine flu vaccination ready and, by then, cases could increase exponentially.

Comparisons to other flu outbreaks

Swine flu is one of many recent flu scares that has appeared in the news. Notorious outbreaks include the lethal avian flu (H5N1) outbreak that first appeared in 1997 and the well-known SARS outbreak of 2003. Here's a breakdown of the results of notable outbreaks in recent history::

• Avian Flu has killed a total of 248 individuals (the most recent was a 27-year-old woman in eastern China). Though avian flu kills roughly 61 percent of the people who contract the virus, it seems unlikely to pass from human to human.
• SARS, which is an acronym for "Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome" has appeared is both easily spread and extremely virulent. The most deadly outbreak of SARS was in 2003, when 299 people died and 1,755 people were infected (representing a 17 percent mortality rate).
• The deadliest influenza pandemic in the past hundred years was the Great Spanish influenza crisis (1918-1919). Much like the swine flu, the Spanish influenza outbreak had an estimated mortality rate of around 2.5 percent. Still, it killed millions because of the widespread prevalence and rapid spread of the virus.

Swine flu is one of many reasons you should have health insurance. Request a quote today!

How deadly is this type of swine flu?

Though it's unknown how deadly this particular strain of swine flu is, it's likely that it's not as deadly as avian flu or SARS. According to Mexican Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova, approximately 53% of those who have been treated at hospitals have been released. Still, this type of swine flu is particularly dangerous to the young and healthy; CNN's Sanja Gupta says there is a reason for this: Young and healthy individuals have a strong immune system, which overreacts to the virus and causes the side effects that could complicate the flu.

A World Health Organization emergency committee met earlier than scheduled after today's news, and is now considering raising the alert level from a Level 3. A Level 4 threat assessment would mean that containment of the flu might be successful with a local, concentrated effort. However, a Level 5 would mean that the outbreak has spread across borders and requires a greater effort. If the threat level is raised, then greater efforts will be devoted to developing a vaccine.

Swine flu treatment - Do you have health insurance?

Swine flu treatment is similar to all other types of in-hospital flu treatment. If you experience any of the symptoms at all, you should immediately visit a local hospital. Costs for treatment may be high without health insurance, especially if you are admitted to the hospital for a longer period. With the growing threat of flu, it could be a good time to consider purchasing an individual health insurance plan. Health-Insurance.org is here to help you find the right plan that covers any potential treatment from swine flu. Simply request a FREE, no obligation quote today to get stared immediately.

Sources

• http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-swine-flu28-2009apr28,0,4320950.story
• http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/28/health/28hong.html?hpw
• http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/27/gupta.qanda/