Obama Admin. Releases Stockpile of Antiflu Virus Drug

WASHINGTON, April 26, 2009 — -- The Obama administration was "all hands on deck" today in response to the quickly escalating swine flu outbreak, with the declaration of a public health emergency and the release of the national antiflu drug stockpile.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano declared a national public health emergency, with swine flu now confirmed in at least 20 cases in five states. However, she said, the outbreak has not yet threatened to reach the lethal level it has in Mexico.

That declaration gives the head of the Department of Health and Human Services authority to take rapid measures -- including authorizing contacts and mobilizing the national disaster system -- to respond to the disease, including allowing the use of unapproved drugs. The agency currently is waiting for President Obama's designee, Kathleen Sebelius, to be approved by the Senate.

"It's all hands on deck and we're doing fine," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said at a special briefing at the White House with the nation's top health and homeland security officials. "We're hopeful that we'll have a new secretary shortly."

The Obama administration has released 12.5 million of the nation's stockpile of 50 million courses of Tamiflu, a drug that has shown itself at least initially to be effective against the flu virus. The Pentagon has readied 7 million courses for military personnel.

The president has also activated a group of administration officials from several agencies to monitor the outbreak and develop a response. However, the State Department has not issued a travel advisory telling Americans not to travel to Mexico.

Centers for Disease Control acting director Dr. Richard Besser said the agency does not believe it can contain the outbreak beyond the five states it has reached so far.

There is still hope, however, that the spread of the swine flu, which has been shown to move from human-to-human contact, will be limited, particularly since the regular flu season is already winding down.