Cablegate: H1n1 Update: 132,965 Confirmed Cases, 61

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RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDF RUEHDH RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHMA RUEHPB
RUEHPOD RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRL #1518 3351417
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 011417Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5930
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 8332
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE USD FAS WASHINGTON DC 0190
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0904
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1577

UNCLAS BERLIN 001518

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 GM
SUBJECT: H1N1 Update: 132,965 Confirmed Cases, 61
H1N1 Deaths

REF A: Berlin 1451 and previous

1. (U) SUMMARY: From November 8-20, the number of
confirmed H1N1 infections in Germany rose by
33,787 cases to a total of 132,965 cases. The
number of H1N1 deaths in Germany increased to
sixty-one. END SUMMARY

2. (U) At its weekly press briefing on November
30, the National Reference Center for Influenza at
the Robert Koch Institute
(RKI) confirmed a total of 33,787 new laboratory
H1N1 cases in Germany from November 8 to November
20, increasing the total number of H1N1 cases to
132,965 (Comment: As of November 8, non-laboratory
cases are no longer included in RKI's reporting.
End Comment) Bavaria remains the German state
with the highest number of confirmed virus cases,
with a total of 30,120, followed by Nord Rhine-
Westphalia (NRW) (26,431) and Baden-Wuerttemberg
(19,233).

German H1N1 Deaths Increase
---------------------------

3. (U) As of November 30, RKI has confirmed the
deaths of sixty-one patients due to H1N1. The
deaths are distributed among the German states as
follows: NRW (21), Bavaria (13), Lower-Saxony (6),
Hesse (4), Baden-Wuerttemberg (3), Rhineland-
Palatinate (3), Thuringia (2), Mecklenburg-
Vorpommern (2), Berlin (2), Bremen (1),
Brandenburg (1), Saarland (1), Schleswig-Holstein
(1) and Saxony (1). In the majority of cases, the
patients had underlying health conditions and were
considered to be "risk patients". We are aware of
eight cases (2 NRW, 2 Lower Saxony, 1 Bavaria, 1
Hesse, 1 Rhineland-Palatinate, 1 Saxony) in which
patients reportedly had no underlying health
conditions.

First Wave of H1N1 passed?
--------------------------

4. (U) According to media reports, the number of
people with acute respiratory infections due to
H1N1 in Bavaria has decreased, indicating that the
situation is slightly improving. However, given
the increased number of infections throughout
Germany, RKI health experts warn that it is too
early to call this the end of the first wave of
flu. The state health ministers are expected to
meet on December 1 to discuss how urgently they
should recommend vaccination for Germans who do
not belong to one of the three risk groups -
health care workers, people with underlying health
conditions, and pregnant women - that were already
advised to get the H1N1 vaccination.

MURPHY

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