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The basic problem is that “we” simply do not know if and when the next major influenza pandemic (one that causes enormous numbers of disease and death), may “emerge”.  The massive 1976 Swine  flu vaccine program was approved by all of the responsible public health decision makers (CDC, NIH, etc.) primarily because of the fear that if another disastrous pandemic like the 1918 Swine flu pandemic emerged and the development of a flu vaccine program was not started immediately, that this would be irresponsible – i.e., from the public health perspective, it was better to be “safe” than “sorry”!  In addition, “enormous numbers of death and illness” cannot be measured at the beginning of any pandemic and this is probably why WHO deleted the phrase “with enormous numbers of death and illness” from its 2005 definition of a flu pandemic.