FLU HITS KYRGYZSTAN

UNCLAS BISHKEK 001275 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KFLU ECON PREL KG SUBJECT: FLU HITS KYRGYZSTAN ¶1. Flu season has arrived, and according to local experts both the seasonal flu and H1N1 are present in Kyrgyzstan and a significant percentage of the population appears to have been affected. As of November 23, the Kyrgyz government reported that only 83 cases of H1N1 had been identified, and that 25 of those infected individuals had recently arrived from other countries. However, it is likely that the H1N1 virus is much more wide spread in Kyrgyzstan than this small number would indicate, and that other cases have simply not been detected. Reportedly, the World Health Organization predicted that at least 30 percent of those living in Kyrgyzstan will be infected with the H1N1 virus this winter. ¶2. With heightened public concern due to fears of the H1N1 virus, there has been extensive media coverage and a run on medical face masks and flu medicine at local pharmacies, with reports of the price of masks in some stores more than doubling within a few days. ¶3. In response to high absenteeism at schools in Bishkek, and in order to limit contagion, the government closed all state run schools in Bishkek between November 23 and November 30. The government also temporarily closed over 400 schools in most other regions of the country. The infection rate in the Bishkek schools before the closure was reported to average between 28 to 35 percent of students, with some schools reporting an infection rate as high as 45 percent. These numbers are similar to the rate reported by the international school that most Embassy children attend, where the absenteeism rate in mid-November was approximately 25 percent, though it has since fallen to a more normal rate. ¶4. The World Health Organization has agreed to provide the Kyrgyz government with enough H1N1 vaccines to vaccinate 10 percent of the population, or about 525,000 people. The Ministry of Health has developed a plan to vaccinate priority groups, including health care workers, pregnant women, individuals with particular chronic diseases, and critical state workers (e.g., border guards). The Kyrgyz government estimates that the cost of administering the vaccination plan will be approximately $160,000, and it is seeking donor support to cover these costs. ¶5. Absenteeism due to the flu and colds at Post has also been running high. One agency at post closed down entirely for two days as only two staff members were not out of the office ill. The Transit Center at Manas was good enough to provide Post with left-over H1N1 vaccine, allowing us to offer it to all our staff and dependents over the age of four (the version supplied to the Center is not approved by the FDA for children under four). So far, two embassy staff members have tested positive for H1N1. Given the cramped work conditions at Embassy Bishkek, Post management has requested that all symptomatic employees not to come to work. MEMMOTT