Ladies and gentleman of ATS just after 4:00 p.m. Margaret Chan of Who World Health Organization {not the band} announced that we have officially gone to Level 5 or H1N1 worldwide pandemic is imminent. Also saying all governments and healthcare facilities should begin their emergency preparedness plans. Could this be what we've been discussing a world wide plan to use F.E.M.A. Federal Emergency Management Association as secret detainment camps? Get back to me love to hear everyone's thoughts. This would be the best time for something to start atleast to my point of view.

Yes I just read this on MSNBC... I really can't believe it. People in the US are recovering so fast from this but raise it level 5?

I guess it's because more areas are getting it. I live in PA and heard that philly has cases now.

Kinda sucks, I live in the middle redneck PA, and pretty much surrounded. NY has it, Ohio, Delaware, everywhere near PA. Just glad that people are recovering from it, because it's most likely going to hit my area next. Live about an hour from philly.

However, people around here are panicing, running around yelling "the end is here" bla bla bla. I try telling them that the virus evolved and isn't nearly as deadly as it was in mexico, but it's like there's no convincing them. They just keep poping up!

By the numbers every state will have cases by sat.

and to think that the "COMMON" flu kills more people than this so called "Swine" flu...

half the media want to rename it to little more than a regular flu, the other half are making this a circus event with the WHO jumping on board declaring it a level 5 threat...what's next? They start selling popcorn?

I think that the table was created after SARS

Originally posted by toast317
Yes I just read this on MSNBC... I really can't believe it. People in the US are recovering so fast from this but raise it level 5?

I guess it's because more areas are getting it. I live in PA and heard that philly has cases now.

Kinda sucks, I live in the middle redneck PA, and pretty much surrounded. NY has it, Ohio, Delaware, everywhere near PA. Just glad that people are recovering from it, because it's most likely going to hit my area next. Live about an hour from philly.

However, people around here are panicing, running around yelling "the end is here" bla bla bla. I try telling them that the virus evolved and isn't nearly as deadly as it was in mexico, but it's like there's no convincing them. They just keep poping up!

I think this is where people are getting confused. Raising a pandemic level doesn't mean people have to start dying everywhere. What it means is that transmissibility to very high and confirmed to be human to human and also involves more countries and is not isolated. This is to raise awareness how of fast this is moving. I have seen many questions like yours wondering if there are little deaths why raise the level. Hopefully this helps the understanding.

The reason they are raising the level is VERY clear in this chart. This applies to U.S. cases. As of today,April 29th, 2009 we are following this track pretty closely. Look 20-30 days in the future, can the medical systems support these numbers of infected? THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A MILD PANDEMIC! Watch the deaths in the U.S. shoot up as the medical system is quickly overwhelmed.