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The 2009 Swine flu “pandemic”

25 April - The WHO Director-General determined that the situation reported from Mexico constituted “a public health emergency of international concern”.

27 April - After considering the available data on confirmed outbreaks of influenza A(H1N1) in Canada,  Mexico and the United States, WHO uses new Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Guidelines as the criteria to raise the level of pandemic influenza alert from phase 3 to phase 4 using new unpublished guidelines.

29 April - Upon evidence of sustained human to human transmission in at least 2 countries in 1 region, WHO raised the pandemic alert level from phase 4 to phase 5.

2 May - Mexico revises down suspected swine flu deaths. “Outbreak may be no worse than seasonal flu,” says Mexican health minister, with deaths under investigation cut from 176 to 101. WHO states that pandemic phases are not related to severity of illness, but simply acknowledges geographical spread.

4 May – WHO withdraws the last phrase about enormous numbers of deaths and illness from its definition of an influenza pandemic on its website.