• U.S. lawmakers want tighter food inspection system

    The list of recalled peanut products in the .S. surpassed 1,000 in an ongoing national salmonella outbreak; the 2007 recall of melamine-tainted pet food eventually grew to 1,179 products; Congress says current system of food inspection is not working

  • Cholera cases exceed 60,000 in Zimbabwe

    Robert Mugabe’s war on his people continues: the number of cholera cases in Zimbabwe has exceeded WHO’s nightmare scenario of 60,000; the Mugabe regime’s systematic looting of the country and its destruction of the country’s public services and infrastructure — especially the health care system and water delivery and treatment facilities — may make the epidemic unstoppable

  • Kansas wins $450 million biolab

    Kansas State University outlasted four other competitors to win the $450 million DHS National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility

  • More human deaths from avian flu

    Avian flu is slowly making its way into the human population; Indonesia reported two more death, bringing Indonesia’s H5N1 total death to 115; China reports three more deaths, bringing that country’s total to 22

  • Novartis awarded $486 million contract to create flu plant

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a $486 million contract to Novartis which will see the company build a plant in North Carolina to produce a flu vaccine

  • WHO: Cholera sickens 30,000 in Zimbabwe

    The World Health Organization reports that as many as 31,656 suspected cases were diagnosed to date with one third of them in the capital of Harare; this is up from 29,131 cases reported on Monday; 1,564 have already died

  • Gene that made 1918 flu lethal isolated

    The 1918 Spanish Flu was history’s most devastating outbreak of infectious disease, killing between 20 and 50 million people; researchers isolate gene that made the 1918 gene especially lethal

  • Zimbabwe cholera death toll soars past 1,500

    The cholera epidemic has claimed more than 1,500 lives in Zimbabwe since August, the World Health Organization said Monday

  • Virulent strain of bird flu hits Vietnam poultry farms

    Until recently Vietnam led the world in H5N1 infection, but drastic measures by the government helped contain the disease; a recent outbreak, coupled with a cold and wet winter, may set back that effort

  • Political squabbles hobble H5N1 research

    Indonesia has had the most cases of human H5N1 flu since 2005; it refuses to share the virus samples with Western pharmaceutical companies unless these companies agree to share with Indonesia the profits from the vaccine these companies develop — and also guarantee Indonesia access to a vaccine in case of a pandemic

  • The continuing development of Fort Detrick offers business opportunities

    In some places there is a debate about the balance between the business opportunities and risks that the presence of a BioLab facility offers; in Washington County, Maryland, they concentrate on the business opportunities the sprawling — and growing — Fort Detrick (it covers 1,127 acres and employs more than 8,000 people) offers

  • Researchers show promising approach to avian flu vaccine

    Terrapin researchers are developing a universal flu vaccine for animals; it could ultimately help prevent or delay another avian flu pandemic in humans

  • South Africa declares region bordering on Zimbabwe cholera disaster area

    Thousands of cholera-infected Zimbabweans cross into South Africa seeking treatment; the Mugabe government does not offer medical services to the population, and makes it difficult for NGOs and world health organizations to do so

  • Zimbabwe hit with cholera epidemic

    Zimbabwe is on the verge of collapse: with 80 percent unemployment, and an inflation rate of 11.2 million percent, the country has now been hit by c cholera epidemic; cholera, a highly contagious disease is both preventable and treatable under normal circumstances, but Zimbabwe’s health sector has collapsed as a result of President Mugabe’s policies

  • Economic downturn to hurt medical emergency preparedness

    Progress made better to protect the United States from disease outbreaks, natural disasters, and bioterrorism is now at risk, due to budget cuts and the economic crisis