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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, May 1, 2009 |
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State Distributes Antiviral Drugs from Federal National StockpileDENVER -State and local public officials worked through the night to manage the shipment, receipt and storage of antiviral drugs to 13 locations throughout Colorado. Shipments were made to storage facilities in Alamosa, Arapahoe, Boulder, Denver, Eagle, El Paso, Jefferson, La Plata, Larimer, Mesa, Otero, Pueblo and Weld counties. Jennifer Trainer, Colorado’s Strategic National Stockpile coordinator at the Colorado Department of Public Health, said, “The success is a tribute to the partnership between state and local levels.” The drugs were positioned based on population density to facilitate a rapid delivery of medicines to any area of the state, should they become necessary in response to the 2009 H1N1 outbreak. “The highest priority for the antiviral stockpile is to meet unmet needs in communities around Colorado,” said Ned Calonge, Colorado’s chief medical officer. “The antiviral drugs are primarily intended for use with severely ill patients in hospitals.” The deployment of antiviral medicine from the Strategic National Stockpile was in response to indications that, should there be a dramatic increase in flu cases, some Colorado hospitals may have had inadequate supplies. Calonge said it is important to remember that these are emergency stocks. Although regional transfer points will be distributing the antiviral drugs to public health agencies, individuals cannot expect to go to local public health agencies to have prescriptions filled. State officials expressed confidence that commercial antiviral supplies will begin to catch up with demand as the nationwide effort to counter the H1N1 virus continues. The overnight operation saw approximately 167,000 individual courses moved from the central receipt point in Colorado Springs to each of the storage facilities. A course is enough medicine to treat one person. While public and local health officials have practiced rapid deliveries, this is the first time such an operation has been initiated in response to a developing, real-world incident. ---30--- |
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