Cablegate: H1n1 Update: 14,940 Confirmed Cases

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RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDF RUEHDH RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHMA RUEHPB
RUEHPOD RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRL #1046 2391217
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 271217Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5034
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0170
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 0406
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 8237
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE USD FAS WASHINGTON DC 0175
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0842
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1554

UNCLAS BERLIN 001046

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/CE PETER SCHROEDER
STATE FOR OES/IHB
STATE FOR AID/GH/HIDN
USDA PASS TO APHIS
HHS PASS TO CDC
HHS FOR OGHA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TBIO KFLU ECON PREL SOCI CASC EAGR MX GM
SUBJECT: H1N1 UPDATE: 14,940 CONFIRMED CASES

REF: A) Berlin 1039, B) Berlin 1025 and previous.

1. (U) SUMMARY: The number of confirmed H1N1 infections in
Germany increased slightly by 359 cases, bringing the total as
of August 26 to 14,940. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia
proposes protection for pregnant women working with flu
patients. END SUMMARY

2. (U) At its August 26 press briefing, the National
Reference
Center for Influenza at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI)
confirmed a total of 359 new (laboratory and non-laboratory)
H1N1 cases in Germany, increasing the total number of H1N1
cases to 14,940. New cases were distributed among the federal
states as follows: North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) (101), Baden-
Wuerttemberg (98), Bavaria (44), Lower-Saxony (34), Hesse
(24), Schleswig-Holstein (13), Brandenburg (12), Rhineland-
Palatinate (12), Hamburg (6), Saarland (5), Saxony-Anhalt (5),
Thuringia (3), Saxony (1) and Berlin (1).

3. (U) According to RKI, 225 of the total 359 new cases are
attributed to people returning from travel abroad. New cases
include non-laboratory H1N1 cases that exhibited symptoms
after being in contact with a laboratory confirmed infected
person.

4. (U) NRW remains the German state with the highest number
of confirmed virus cases with a total of 4,869, followed by
Lower-Saxony (2,355) and Baden-Wuerttemberg (1,991 cases).
About 24 percent (3,583) of all confirmed infections in
Germany have resulted from domestic transmission.

5. (U) Following WHO's warning that there is an increased
risk for pregnant women of complications from the new flu, NRW
health officials have recommended that employers grant excused
absences to pregnant employees with potentially high exposure
to infected patients. This applies to hospitals and medical
practices. To date, about one third of the reported H1N1
infections in Germany occurred in NRW.

MURPHY

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