Dear Friend,

I recently began work as the Director of the HHS Office of Health Reform, and I wanted to share President Obama's weekly address with all of you.

This weekend the President's address focuses on the urgent need for comprehensive health reform. The President noted:
"...We know that our families, our economy, and our nation itself will not succeed in the 21st century if we continue to be held down by the weight of rapidly rising health care costs and a broken health care system."

You can watch the President's address now by visiting www.whitehouse.gov.

Hans Rosling has been leading the way in dynamic representation of development and health data. His site is Gapminder at http://www.gapminder.org/

The latest posting
http://www.gapminder.org/videos/swine-flu-alert-news-death-ratio-tuberculosis/
is very short video demonstrating his compelling use of data.

I encourage those of you focusing on indicators to review his take and his long list of indicators at
http://www.gapminder.org/gapminder-world/indicators-in-gapminder-world/

President Obama will announce on Friday that he has chosen Dr. Thomas R.
Frieden, the New York City health commissioner, as the next director of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, administration officials said
Thursday.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/health/policy/15cdc.html

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/commish/combio.shtml

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
Published: May 14, 2009
The swine flu virus did not result from a laboratory accident, the World Health Organization said Thursday, working to debunk rumors started by an Australian virologist and circulated by news outlets all over the world.

“We took this very seriously,” Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the agency’s deputy director general, said of the virologist’s assertion. “But the evidence suggests that this is a naturally occurring virus, not a laboratory-derived virus.”

Source: BioMed Central
Date: 14 May 2009
Link: Will the NHS continue to function in an influenza pandemic? A survey of healthcare workers in the West Midlands, UK

Conclusion:

11 May 2009

The major determinant of the severity of an influenza pandemic, as measured by the number of cases of severe illness and deaths it causes, is the inherent virulence of the virus. However, many other factors influence the overall severity of a pandemic’s impact.

“……Society at a Glance provides a basis for addressing these twin questions. It offers a concise overview of quantitative social trends and policies across the OECD. Society at a Glance gives an overview of social trends and policy developments in OECD countries using indicators taken from OECD studies and other sources. It attempts to help people see how their societies have changed, particularly in comparison with other countries.

The global recession and tight credit conditions have cast a chill on the solar-power industry after years of breakneck growth, and could usher in long-term changes in the industry.

Banks have curtailed financing for major solar projects, and Spain -- the world's second-largest solar-power market after Germany -- has slashed subsidies for the industry, leading to sharply lower demand for solar cells. Sales of the tiny chips that convert the sun's rays into electricity are expected to drop by at least 20% this year.

MAY 10, 2009, 2:00 P.M. ET

By HENRY PULIZZI

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama on Saturday pressed lawmakers to send him credit-card reform legislation by Memorial Day, May 25, saying consumers need stricter protections against unfair interest-rate hikes and penalties.

"There is no time for delay," Mr. Obama said in his weekly address. "We need a durable and successful flow of credit in our economy, but we can't tolerate profits that depend upon misleading working families. Those days are over."

"Worried well' overload gives taste of pandemic scenario

Publication: CIDRAP News
Author: Maryn McKenna * Contributing Writer
Date: 08 May 2009

With the global outbreak of novel H1N1 influenza (swine flu) entering its fourth week, physicians at emergency rooms, clinics, and hospitals around the United States say they are overwhelmed with "worried well" who have as much as doubled their patient loads.

May 8, 2009

Boston, MA -- As part of a series about Americans' response to the H1N1 flu outbreak, the Harvard Opinion Research Program at the Harvard School of Public Health has released a national poll which finds that many Americans have taken steps to protect themselves and their families against the disease. The polling was done on May 5-6, 2009.

Americans' Response

Updated: 2009-05-08 10:02
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/life/2009-05/08/content_7757010.htm

GENEVA – Up to 2 billion people could be infected by swine flu if the current outbreak turns into a pandemic lasting two years, the World Health Organization said Thursday. WHO flu chief Keiji Fukuda said the historical record of flu pandemics indicates one-third of the world's population gets infected in such outbreaks. Independent experts agreed that the estimate was possible but pointed out that many would not show any symptoms.

From the Center for Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance

Influenza A (H1N1) Outbreak Update
May 8, 2009