At long last, NY has released its pandemic plan. It's a 400 page document, filled with charts and graphs, and lots of information. The bottom line, however, is that a pandemic must be handled on the local level (county/city), and all counties in NY have until August to submit their pandemic plans.
A synopis of the plan follows :
Health and government experts acknowledge that a pandemic producing widespread serious illness could significantly impact all sectors of society. The health care system would be overburdened; businesses could experience a dramatic reduction in their workforce as employees become ill, remain home to care for sick family members, or are absent due to child care issues if schools close in response to a pandemic.
In the event of a pandemic, people would be urged to help reduce influenza transmission by being diligent about hygiene (washing hands frequently, covering their cough, disinfecting telephones, desktops and other surfaces that people frequently touch). It would also be crucial for individuals with flu-like symptoms to refrain from going to work, school or anywhere else they might spread germs.
New Yorkers would be advised to stockpile a supply of non-perishable food, water, medications and essential household items to avoid having to go out in public if social distancing is recommended.
http://tinyurl.com/khz8y
Additional comments were made yesterday by the public health department of NY state.
Schools and business would be shut down, the governor could declare martial law and residents would be told to stockpile food and water if a killer flu pandemic sweeps into New York, a newly released state preparedness plan reveals.
[snip]
“The federal plan calls for quarantine and isolation, and we follow the federal plan,” Novello said. “We would use it only at the beginning of the pandemic. When the pandemic is all over the place, it is useless for us to use quarantine and isolation.”
Whether this, or any other plan, will work in a pandemic is up for debate. The point is, your Federal, State, and (hopefully) local governments are taking the pandemic threat seriously.
Are you?