MGSF01: TWO ADDITIONAL H1N1 CASES CONFIRMED IN ISRAEL;

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000986 SENSITIVE SIPDIS NIH FOR INTERNATIONAL DEPT FOR OES/IHB,NEA/IPA,AND CA/OCS MED FOR SRINIVASAN AND MCFADDEN HHS/OSSI FOR MARK ABDY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TBIO KFLU AEMR ASEC CASC KFLO KSAF KPAO PREL PINR AMGT, MG, AMED, WHO, IS, JO, KWBG, EG SUBJECT: MGSF01: TWO ADDITIONAL H1N1 CASES CONFIRMED IN ISRAEL; REGIONAL HEALTH COOPERATION EFFORTS RESUME REF: A) STATE 41745 B) TEL AVIV 932 C) TEL AVIV 949 D) TEL AVIV 958 ¶1. (SBU) Over the weekend two additional cases of H1N1 were confirmed in Israel, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the nation up to four. To date, all reported H1N1 infections in Israel have been in people who have recently visited Mexico; no secondary transmission has been observed. A 34-year old man was identified Friday as the third case, but he recovered so quickly that Ministry of Health officials approved his release from the hospital on Saturday, despite established guidelines mandating a one-week isolation and observation period. The patient and his partner agreed to continue isolation in their home. A 20-year old woman, the most recent case, remains in isolation in a Tel Aviv hospital, but the Ministry of Health reports she is recovering well. As a precaution, the Ministry of Health has requested that all those who have visited Mexico in the past seven days observe a voluntary one-week quarantine in their homes. ¶2. (SBU) The Middle East Consortium for Infectious Disease Surveillance (MECIDS) met last Friday at the World Health Organization offices in East Jerusalem, ending a two-year hiatus. MECIDS is comprised of representatives from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and Jordan, and has coordinated previous efforts in avian flu pandemic preparedness and foodborne disease surveillance. Israeli media reported that a representative from the Egyptian embassy in Israel, who also attended the meeting, indicated that Egypt may soon join the consortium. Dr. Alex Leventhal, Director of International Relations for the Ministry of Health, told post ESTH office that at the meeting Israel promised to help Jordan and the Palestinian Authority examine patients suspected of having contracted the H1N1 virus and to perform screening of blood samples (PCR) at its central laboratory in Tel Hashomer. Leventhal said the meeting was highly cooperative and resulted in a good exchange of information among the participants, including some discussion regarding what he referred to as a shortage of medications available in Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. He said that Jordan reported having only enough flu medication for five percent of its population, while the Palestinian Authority reported having enough for less than one percent. (This was also reported in Israeli media, but was not confirmed directly.) According to Leventhal, neither Jordan nor the Palestinian Authority requested assistance from Israel in obtaining more medication; rather both would pursue support from the World Health Organization and the World Bank. The participants agreed to reconvene in two weeks. CUNNINGHAM