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Japan joins other nations around the world, including the UK and the United States, who are considering the wisdom of having more antivirals to combat a pandemic than originally contemplated.
Two years ago most nation's felt that having a 10-pill course of Tamiflu for 25% of their population would suffice. Now, governments are going back and taking a second look.
Given recent concerns over the development of Tamiflu resistant influenza strains, there is now also a push to diversify stockpiles to include GSK's Relenza as well.
This story from Bloomberg.
Japan May Double Stockpile of Antiviral Medicines (Update1)
By Kanoko Matsuyama
June 20 (Bloomberg) -- Japan should raise the stockpile of influenza medicines to cover about 60 million people, or half its population, against a possible pandemic that could kill millions, a government panel recommended.
Japan should also increase supplies of GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Relenza in case of emerging drug-resistance to Roche Holding AG's Tamiflu, the team, led by Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Jiro Kawasaki, said in documents that will be proposed to the government today. No timeframe was provided.
``There are many points that we must continue to discuss in detail,'' including deciding the ratio of medicines, Kawasaki told reporters in Tokyo today. ``We also want to consider including new drugs in development in Japan if approved next year.''
Tamiflu and Relenza are being stored by the Geneva-based World Health Organization and governments around the world for use in the event of an avian influenze pandemic in humans. The medicines offer a defense against the H5N1 strain of bird flu that's spread to more than 60 countries and has killed 243 people in 12 countries as of June 19.
Japan currently stockpiles anti-viral medicines for 23 percent of the country's population. Tamiflu is available for 28 million people and Relenza supplies would cover 1.35 million.
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