The threat posed by H1N1 influenza, the spread of which caused an international health scare last year, appears to now be less serious in the northern hemisphere. It's time for the government to review its preventive and reactive policies on H1N1 influenza, in preparation for any strain of influenza that may become rampant in the next influenza season. Japan should also help countries in Africa and Southeast Asia in their current efforts to combat H1N1 influenza.
The H1N1 strain of influenza A that was at one time referred to as "swine flu" has infected people in more than 200 countries and regions and killed some 18,000 people. In Japan, as of March 30, 17,646 people had been hospitalized and 198 people had died. However, overall the H1N1 subtype's toxicity proved to be low. Data released in November showed that Japan's death rate from the virus was 0.2 per 1 million people, lower than Britain's rate of 2.2 and the United States' rate of 3.3.
Some observers have criticized the World Health Organization's declaration of a pandemic as an overreaction. In Japan, many problems with influenza management have been pointed out. As one example, 2.34 million doses of Swiss-made vaccine worth ¥3 billion expired on March 31 and must be discarded.