Swine Flu Watch: World Bank says outbreak could cost 0.7% to 4.8% of global GDP; 51 deaths as pandemic spreads
>>WHO: 51 more swine flu deaths as pandemic spreads
The World Health Organization says the global tally of deaths from swine flu has increased by 51 to 231.
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The global body says Algeria, Bangladesh, Brunei, Fiji and Slovenia reported their first cases over the weekend.
Full Article: here.
>>Six-Year-Old Peel Girl Dies From H1N1 Flu Virus
The H1N1 flu virus has taken another life in Ontario – and this is the youngest patient yet. Health officials have confirmed a six-year-old girl succumbed to the ailment in Peel Region, making her the fourth person to die from the bug since it first surfaced earlier this year.
Full Article: here.
>>Pandemic Might Be as Severe as 1968 Hong Kong Flu
The pandemic sparked by swine flu may be as severe as the Hong Kong flu of 1968-69 that cost an estimated 0.7 percent of global gross domestic product, according to the World Bank.
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Transmission of the bug is likely to accelerate as the flu season begins in the Southern Hemisphere and again when it returns in the Northern Hemisphere, the bank said in a report released yesterday. As many as 1.5 million people die in a normal flu season worldwide, and even a mild new flu might add another 1.4 million deaths, the report said.
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Simulations of the potential economic and human costs of a pandemic based on avian flu that was undertaken for a 2006 report suggested that the costs of a global outbreak could range from 0.7 percent to 4.8 percent of global GDP, depending on the severity of the outbreak, the lender said.
Full Article: here.
