Countries Who Treat Emerging Flu Strains Like H5N1 (bird Flu) As Intellectual Property Are Threatening World Health And Should Be Stopped Immediately From These Practices.
According to the World Health Organization, the world is at a level 3 (of 6) for a pandemic flu alert that is estimated could kill 360 million people worldwide. Countries like Indonesia and China are currently withholding vital information about emerging flu viruses for individual financial gain, making it impossible for the rest of the world to study emerging strains/mutations and develop vaccines which threaten world health. This lack of cooperation with the WHO leaves the world vulnerable to the next flu pandemic. Countries should be impelled to share merging strains/mutations with WHO.
All genetic research companies/universities are patenting genes and diseases, this practice needs to
be done away with entirely and not just in the bird flu cases.
Absolutely, if such countries are withholding this information, something needs to be done. If H5N1
emerges into a form that is able to spread effectively from human to human, it would affect millions
upon millions of people, and so we simply must work together and do all that we can in preparation
for such a disastrous event.
Bird Flu is one such disease which has caused huge and unexpected destruction. Since the last few
years these disease is coming back time after time and every time there have been millions of
unwanted happenings in the world. According to the World Health Organization our world is at the
third level of such a virus threat. Some countries like China and Indonesia are getting information
on such a disease as to how to deal with this virus and how to protect others from not being
infected. But may be due to some reasons they are not sharing these information with the World
Health Organization but if this goes on then it is estimated that such an infection can cause the
death of more than 360 million people. Thus it is necessary that they should not hide those
information as that could become a threat to world health.
Yes I agree with you that countries like Indonesia and China who have Emerging Flu Viruses
information; they should share and cooperate with WHO so that millions of lives can be saved. They
are using this information for their benefits at the moment so that they can make good money. It is
all against morality and integrity. We should at least share resources and ideas when there is a
threat to all human kind and let bygones be bygones.
Yes, I agree with your point. Currently, there is even a shortage of vaccines in the U.S. This shows
that we are really not prepared for the next global epidemic of influenza.
Yes, thank you for your comment, Indonesia has just "licensed" only Baxter to research the latest strains for on behalf of Indonesia, rather than sharing the info for study of these threatening mutations with the rest of the world. Can you imagine licensing a flue virus that potentially threatens the whole world's health so substantially? They are doing this because the country is so poor, and they feel that if other countries also study, they will make vaccines that are not of immediate benefit to Indonesia as much as the rest of the world, and they will not receive the revenues. It is a similar situation in China. So in the name of money this is being done. I can hardly believe this is happening! :(
08 Dec 2007 19:26
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