H1N1 ARRIVES IN GAZA DESPITE CLOSURE POLICY

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 002238 SENSITIVE SIPDIS NEA FOR NEA/IPA; OES/IB FOR PATTERSON; DEPT PASS TO USAID FOR ANE/MEA:MCCLOUD/BORODIN; HHS FOR CDC AND OGHA; NSC FOR KUMAR; JOINT STAFF FOR LTGEN SELVA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TBIO KFLU EAGR EAID ECON KWBG SENV SUBJECT: H1N1 ARRIVES IN GAZA DESPITE CLOSURE POLICY ¶1. (SBU) Summary. On December 6, the de facto Hamas authorities in Gaza announced the first confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus. As of the evening of December 8, health workers confirmed 21 cases of H1N1 in Gaza, including five fatalities. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) On December 6, the Hamas "Ministry of Health" (MOH) in Gaza announced the first confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus in the coastal strip. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Gaza, Mahmoud Daher, the Hamas MOH confirmed 21 cases, including five fatalities, by the evening of December 8. Four of the victims that died were already suffering from underlying illnesses, such as respiratory failure. The fifth death was a child of 15 months who arrived at a pediatric hospital in critical condition and was admitted into the intensive care unit. Eight of the confirmed H1N1 cases were released from the hospital to recover at home. Daher said that the "spread of H1N1 in Gaza is increasing." ¶3. (SBU) The Hamas MOH identified three isolation units at Al Shifa Hospital and Pediatric Hospital, both in Gaza City, and Gaza European Hospital in Khan Yunis. The Hamas MOH protocols dictate that all complicated cases are treated at hospitals in isolation and the remaining cases recover at home. Daher said that the capacity for treatment was decent in the three isolation units. According to Daher, the Government of Israel (GOI) said that it would accept all suspected and confirmed H1N1 cases for treatment. ¶4. (SBU) The MOH of the Palestinian Authority (PA) previously shipped 6,000 doses of the H1N1 vaccine to Gaza. Five thousand doses were given to Hajj pilgrims before their departure to Mecca in the last two months, and 1,000 doses were given to health care workers in the last few days. Dr. Mugo Muita of the WHO in Jerusalem told post that the H1N1 cases in Gaza did not include Hajj pilgrims or anyone who recently traveled outside the strip. The Israeli military issued a press release on December 7, falsely stating that it had transferred 10,000 doses into Gaza. The priority recipients for the vaccine are health workers, children between one and three-years old, pregnant women, and persons with chronic diseases. Approximately 8,000 health professionals work in the Hamas MOH, and there are a few thousand additional health workers among NGOs and UNRWA. The PA MOH in Ramallah has a contract with pharmaceutical maker GlaxoSmithKline to purchase one million doses of the H1N1 vaccine, to arrive in the West Bank in three tranches in mid-December, mid January and mid-February. Dr. Asad Ramlawi, Director General for Primary Health Care of the PA MOH, reported that the PA would transfer 150,000 doses of the vaccine to Gaza from its first shipment. The Hamas MOH has 6,300 treatment courses of Tamiflu (10 tablets per course) for H1N1 patients. ¶5. (SBU) Separately, the central drug store in Gaza currently is out of stock of 75 essential medicines. The shortage of medicine in Gaza is a chronic problem largely due to lack of capacity within the PA in Ramallah; the GOI generally allows medicines and medical supplies into Gaza. Daher said that the PA agreed to provide more medicines this week, and that the breakout of H1N1 in Gaza prompted the PA to be more "proactive" in its supply of medicines. ¶6. (SBU) Daher reported that the WHO met with the Israeli MOH this week and emphasized the lack of capacity in the Gaza health care system due to the closure policy and deteriorating infrastructure, with increased stress from population growth. RUBINSTEIN