In order to assess the effectiveness of the federal government’s plans to combat the bird flu pandemic that may arise in the United States, the White House is hosting a top-level exercise this Saturday. It is believed to last for four hours and would be attended by Cabinet Secretaries and other important Government Officials.
The President however would be excluded from the top-level meeting, according to official reports declared by White House press secretary Scott McClellan. She has also stressed upon the need for the approval of a reliable, authentic, improved plan that has been tested prior to its implementation.Details about how the exercise would be conducted and participation of other state officials have not yet been released officially.
The recent reports of widespread infection of millions of birds across the Asian Subcontinent have prompted fears of a pandemic. Although no case of human- human transmission of the avian bird flu virus has been reported or documented so far, there is a possibility that it might happen if the virus mutates itself to a more virulent form.
If this were to happen, it is predicted that the effects would be devastating as the virus is resistant to attacks by the human immune system. The disease has already claimed the lives of many people who had contracted the disease as a result of close contact with poultry.
