No epidemic to be yet announced

The Municipal Preventive Medicine Center was ready to announce a pandemic flu epidemic in Chisinau on November 30, but the Mayor of Chisinau Dorin Chirtoaca said it was not the case. The mayor said 750 cases have to be confirmed during a week for declaring an epidemic, as recommended by the World Health Organization, Info-Prim Neo reports. At Monday's meeting of the Chisinau services and divisions, the acting head of the Health Division Luminita Suveica said 231 cases of pandemic flu have been confirmed in the capital city last week. A number of 741 cases have been recorded in Chisinau so far, including three deaths caused by the new virus. The representative of the Municipal Preventive Medicine Center insisted that the pandemic flu epidemic be announced from today as the family doctors identified a large number of new cases. He could not yet say what steps will be taken if the epidemic is announced, stressing the anti-epidemic measures taken now will be continued. Suveica replied that many of the family doctors report cases of pandemic flu in order to make sure that they were not wrong. The pandemic flu entered 36 kindergartens, 64 schools and lyceums,13 colleges and 12 universities.