Swine Flu Round 2?

According to the national Secretariat of Health, to date there have been 35,838 cases of the human influenza virus H1N1 in Mexico, 245 of which have been fatal. The secretariat is pretty calm about rising cases now, however, having been around the block once with the flu.

Swine Flu Technology Turnaround

From the Washington Post:
The genetic decoders, called real-time polymerase chain reaction machines, cost $30,000 each. The national lab’s staff had only one, purchased weeks earlier, and barely knew how to operate it.
This crucial gap was one reason there were so many unanswered questions about the epidemic in the first days — such as how many [...]

Back to School on Wednesday?

The BBC reports that the swine flu is in the ‘declining phase’:
Swine flu in Mexico, the epicentre of the world outbreak, has peaked, the Mexican health minister has said. Jose Angel Cordova said the virus, blamed for at least 19 deaths in Mexico, appeared to have peaked between 23-28 April. “The evolution of the epidemic [...]

When Swine Flew

As I write, the city is quiet. Schools are officially closed until May 6th. Restaurants have been forced by the federal government to shut their doors as well. A high ranking connection in the health sector told a friend a few days ago that there have been about 2,000 deaths across the country – much [...]

A Doubtful Proposition

Aparently, Mexico’s lawmakers want to ban smoking in “public places”, although the meaning of that term has not yet been defined. It’s doubtful whether anything beyond raising tobacco prices is possible. Here’s Reuter’s article:
MEXICO CITY, Nov 21 (Reuters) – A Mexican congressional committee approved on Wednesday a ban on smoking in public places, a first [...]