# 3394
It’s a subject that has generated considerable speculation over the past month or so.
With the number of `confirmed cases’ here in the United States running in the mid-twenty-thousands, and our inability to test everyone, how many people really have caught this virus?
According to this report, carried by the AP, that number is estimated to be near 1 million.
US swine flu cases may have hit 1 million
By MIKE STOBBE, AP
ATLANTA – Health officials estimate that as many as 1 million Americans now have the new swine flu. Lyn Finelli, a flu surveillance official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, voiced the estimate at a vaccine advisory meeting Thursday in Atlanta.
The estimate is based on mathematical modeling. Nearly 28,000 U.S. cases have been reported to the CDC, accounting for roughly half the world's cases. The U.S. count includes 3,065 hospitalizations and 127 deaths.
An estimated 15 million to 60 million Americans catch seasonal flu each year.
This is no doubt, a rough estimate. And of course, the number of deaths registered from this virus are likely badly under-counted as well.
Still, it’s nice to get some idea of the size of the ballpark we are playing in.
