Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

Democratic senator points out 'gaping hole' in Bush flu strategy.

On the heels of President Bush's Nov. 2 announcement of a $7 billion plan to combat a potential national bird flu epidemic, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt has released the medical and public health component of the president's plan. This component is a detailed guide for how the nation's health care system can prepare and respond to an influenza pandemic.

Meanwhile, several congressional Democrats charge that Bush's plan is too little, too late.

"There is a gaping hole in the president's Avian Flu plan," Sen. Chuck Shumer (D-NY) said in a statement. "The experts agree that we should have enough antivirals
like Tamiflu to cover 40 to 50 percent of the public; but the president's plan would only cover 7 percent and that just isn't enough."

Even so, the public could see Bush as acting quickly to protect the country, which may bolster his image and approval numbers that have fallen steadily since the
Hurricane Katrina debacle. Leavitt called the president's strategy "aggressive," and says the White House is acting now to protect the country in the future.

"An influenza pandemic would test our nation's health care system as never before, and this plan anticipates the specific problems we will face and recommends solutions to better protect the American people," Leavitt said.

Of the $7 billion targeted for the president's plan, $6.7 billion is going to HHS.

The department's plan is broken into four major components:

• Intensifying surveillance and collaborating on containment measures--both international and domestic;

• Stockpiling anti-virals and vaccines, and working with the health industry to expand capacity for producing medical countermeasures;

• Creating a seamless network of federal, state and local preparedness, including increasing health care surge capacity, and

• Developing public education and communications efforts that are critical to keeping the public informed.

In the case of such an emergency, HHS would provide: guidance to state and local partners with staffing and supplies to prepare for a surge in patients; distribution of vaccines and anti-viral medications; roles and responsibilities for community decision-makers; and measures to control infection and limit the spread of disease, according to the department's plan.