Well, it turns out people are still smuggling bushmeat—you know, tropical wild game like MONKEYS and BATS—into the country through JFK, and guess what? It's still dangerous to eat! Because it can spread diseases! And even if they're not deadly right now, they might be soon! Because it's happened before, with bushmeat and AIDS! Everybody freak out! more ›

Here's today's swine flu news: The World Health Organization expects an "explosion" of swine flu cases this fall. According to the WHO's Western Pacific director, Shin Young-soo, many countries will see the number of cases double every few days for several months—"It is certain there will be more cases and more deaths"—but the countries at greatest risk are the developing nations which are under-equipped to respond. Also, the Chilean health ministry says that swine flu was found in turkeys: "Authorities ordered a complete quarantine Friday and alerted the World Health Organization. Some illness was suspected at the farms owned by the Sopraval company after egg production dropped this month." (However, Chile's deputy health minister says turkeys are still safe to eat.) And in America, the CDC is recommending that businesses and employers develop plans on how to deal with swine flu, including suggestions like keep sick employees home and don't require doctor's notes. more ›

The NYC Health Department released data yesterday suggesting "community transmission" of swine flu (aka H1N1 virus) is on the decline, because emergency room visits have declined: "As expected, however, hospitalizations and fatalities continue to occur. As of June 11, the Health Department had recorded 567 hospitalizations and 16 deaths. The latest death occurred in a person aged 40-49." more ›

On the day the swine flu officially a pandemic, the NYC Health Department raised the number of swine flu-related fatalities to 15. And one of the victims was Sarah Michel, an 11-year-old and sixth grader at IS609K in Borough Park. Her mother told the Daily News, "It's just terrible. I don't know what to say. We're all grieving right now. We're all mourning my little girl." more ›

Swine flu is now officially a pandemic, according to the World Health Organization. That's the highest alert level the WHO gives to contagious diseases and the first pandemic declared in 41 years. The raised alert level comes as the city's Health Department confirms today three more deaths due to the H1N1 virus and released estimates yesterday that show 550,000 people could be infected. But, while WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl told Reuters the declaration "doesn't mean anything concerning severity, it is concerning geographic spread," some scientists are painting a graver picture. Said Cambridge University flu virologist Chris Smith to CBS News: "The writing has been on the wall for weeks...WHO probably doesn't want people to panic, but the virus is now unstoppable." more ›

As four schools are reopening today after large numbers of students (and teacher) have come down with swine flu-like symptoms, six more schools—four in Queens, two in Brooklyn—are closing. The Department of Education has finally put a list of closed schools as well as open schools with their attendance rates online— the third letter in the code represents the borough (M for Manhattan, X for the Bronx, K for Brooklyn, Q for Queens and R for Staten Island). For instance, Louis Brandeis High School in Manhattan has an attendance rate of 64% and Richmond Hill High School in Queens has one of 65%. more ›

This morning, parents, worried about the swine flu and their children's health, held a rally demanding that their Queens public schools be shut down. Currently, there are 21 public schools and five private schools closed due to swine flu concerns. The city maintains that they are monitoring schools, but one parent told NY1 that illness could have been avoid, "My daughter came to school on Monday, she came to school very healthy and when she went home, she was crying for her throat and her head. And then an hour later, she had a high fever." more ›

The NYC Health Department announced that the baby who died at Elmhurst Hospital Center Monday night did not have swine flu. According to the Daily News, "tests on nasal swabs taken from 16-month-old Jonathan Zamora... showed no signs of the H1N1 virus. But because a fatality was involved, 'It is necessary to take extra steps to get definitive results,' the Health Department said in a statement." The CDC will be examining specimens from the autopsy. The baby's father Zeferino Zamaro, who said his son simply became very weak and extremely feverish, told the News, "People should not panic. It's not what people think." more ›

Last night, a 16-month-old boy with flu-like symptoms died at Elmhurst Hospital Center. According to the Daily News, the hospital said 200 people were also there with flu-like symptoms. The Centers for Disease Control will investigate whether swine flu was the culprit. more ›

After closing three schools on Thursday due to swine flu symptoms in many students, the city closed three more—JHS 74 in Bayside, Queens and P.S. 107 in Flushing, Queens and I.S. 318 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Students at those three schools also exhibited "unusually high levels of influenza-like illnesses." Health Department Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden said, "Despite the significant disruption this causes, the Health Department has recommended closing these schools to reduce the spread of influenza. We are continuing to carefully monitor H1N1 virus throughout the City, and are taking action again today because there are unusually high and increasing levels of flu-like illnesses at these three public schools." more ›

Yesterday's announcement that three schools in Queens would be closed today and next week because of the high number of flu-like symptoms from students has raised concerns from parents about the H1N1—aka swine flu—infection all over again. One parent told the Post, "We thought this whole thing was over," and her 10-year-old son added that he was "scared -- because I don't want to see any of my friends get sick." more ›

Yes, there's still swine flu/H1N1 infection going around—yesterday, State Health Commissioner Richard Daines reported that the state's total is now at 214: With three new cases in NYC and three new cases outside (all in Westchester), the breakdown is 167 cases in NYC and 47 in the rest of the state. If you're really curious about where the cases are by county, here's a PDF. The NYC Health Department emphasizes, "To date, nearly all confirmed and probable cases have been mild, and all of the affected people have recovered or are recovering. No deaths have been associated with the illness in New York City," and adds that everyone should practice good hygiene (cover your sneezes! wash your hands!). Globally, the WHO says "33 countries have officially reported 6497 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection," with a total of 65 deaths (60 in Mexico, three in the U.S., one in Canada and one in Costa Rica). more ›

The Centers for Disease Control confirmed the first American death from the swine flu—a 23-month-old child from Texas died. The CDC also said the child had recently traveled to Mexico. Acting CDC chief Dr. Richard Besser told the Today Show, "Even though we've been expecting [that there would be some deaths], it is very, very sad. As a pediatrician and a parent, my heart goes out to the family." He added, "I don't think it (the reported death in Texas) indicates any change in the strain. We see with any flu virus a spectrum of disease symptoms... It's very important that people take their concern and channel it into action...it is crucial that people understand what they need to do if symptoms appear." Here's the CDC's Swine Flu & You website, which points out, "Children, especially younger children, might potentially be contagious for longer periods." (Children are also very vulnerable to the seasonal flu.) more ›

This afternoon, city officials announced that many more school children may have the swine flu, which has been confirmed in 45 NYC residents (stats from CDC) so far. Beyond St. Francis Prep in Queens where the first cases were reported, Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden said that "hundreds of students were ill with symptoms which most likely were swine flu." Children at P.S. 177, a school for autistic children, were being tested (and the school is closed) as were ones at a Catholic school Ascension. From CityRoom:

P.S. 177 is at 56-37 188th Street in Fresh Meadows, in eastern Queens; Ascension is at 220 West 108th Street, between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue. Several St. Francis students had siblings at P.S. 177, but it was not immediately clear how or whether the Manhattan school was linked to the St. Francis flu outbreak.

As the swine flu death toll in Mexico rose to 149 yesterday (with 2,000 hospitalized), for the first time ever the World Health Organization raised its global epidemic threat level to Phase IV. That's two phases below a full blown pandemic, and the alert means there is sustained human-to-human transmission, with containment is no longer possible. more ›

WCBS 2 reports that an employee at Ernst & Young's Times Square office has swine flu. However, Ernst & Young does not believe anyone in the office was exposed; here's the company's statement: "An employee in our offices at 5 Times Square was diagnosed on Sunday with swine flu, which she contracted from a family member. The individual had not been in offices since last Thursday. According to the Center for Disease Control, the disease has a 24-hour incubation period. Given the timeframe, we believe that it is unlikely that any other of our people have been infected." Still, the company says it has followed CDC procedures, "including closing the offices on the floor where she worked and retaining a skilled sanitation service to clean the area" and are allowing employees "to work from home if they would be more comfortable doing so." Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg said there were 28 confirmed cases of swine flu; there are also five probable cases of swine flu in NJ. Here's the CDC's website "Swine Flu And You" and NYC's Health Dept. also has a brochure (PDF). more ›