Is the U.S. Prepared For The Next Major Pandemic? (bias, financial)

[tijlover]

After finishing up reading The Great Influenza/Spanish Flu of 1918, by John M. Barry, his last chapter scared me, reporting that we're unprepared. One of the factors is the hospital closings in the rural areas as well as our big cities and staff reductions.

Yes, they're stockpiling meds around the world, but will those meds be effective with the new influenza, and will they be quick enough to find a cure?

Add to that 1-2 child families, no large families anymore.

Both Covid and the Great Influenza was traced to swine.

Anything we can do to prepare for it?

[Sunbiz1]

No, because very few prepare for anything; it is called normalcy bias.
Pandemic?, oh boy; that would be an almost impossible task to sell again.

[Mike from back east]

Best we can do at this time is to:

- Federal and state health departments have to keep pandemic plans up to date, and resourced.
- Government and industry have to stockpile whatever vaccines and supplies we expect to need.
- Vaccine makers need to be ready, with plans for expansion. Federal financial assistance may be in order.
- Governments and their partners need a public relations campaign to overcome vaccine mis-information.

It's all about the planning which must be done in advance, resourced, and tested via periodic "war games" just as we did in DoD every year.

Not much else can be done.

We're not going to rehash COVID-19 matters here.

Thread complete.