Flu spread raises alarm

By Kelly Brewington and Stephanie Desmon, The Baltimore Sun

Officials advised Monday against most travel to Mexico, the center of an outbreak of swine flu suspected of killing almost 150 people there and sickening at least 50 through its spread to the United States.

The acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said cases of the virus in the U.S. have been mild – none has been reported in Maryland – but warned that more serious cases could emerge.

“I wouldn’t rest on the fact that we have only seen cases in this country that are less severe,” Dr. Richard Besser told reporters.

He said officials were reacting “aggressively,” including releasing 11 million courses of anti-viral drugs from a national strategic stockpile and sending kits to some states to enable them to test for the disease locally.

On Monday, a day after federal authorities announced a public health emergency, President Barack Obama told a group of scientists that while the outbreak is a cause for concern, it is “not a cause for alarm.”

Later in the day, the State Department issued an alert advising U.S. citizens to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico.

Maryland health officials said they are working with hospitals and health departments, bracing for what they predict will be the inevitable stricken patient.

“We will have a case here in Maryland,” said state health Secretary John M. Colmers. “I don’t think there’s any doubt of that. What we don’t know is how extensive it will be and whether or not it will be as virulent as what we are seeing in Mexico. That’s why we must continue to monitor the situation.”