# 3921
While the true scope of the flu outbreak in the Ukraine is anything but clear, the news coverage of the past few days has been sufficient to drive many people to local pharmacies to stock up on masks and other flu supplies.
Consequently, pharmacies have reportedly raised prices, and some shelves are now empty.
This report from http://www.javno.com
Ukrainians empty pharmacies in swine flu panic
- In Lviv in the western region, some pharmacies ran out of flu medicines and masks on Saturday after worried customers made bulk purchases.
Ukraine residents emptied pharmacies of masks and flu medicines on Saturday after the government ordered a three-week closure of schools and cinemas to combat swine flu.
In Lviv in the western region, some pharmacies ran out of flu medicines and masks on Saturday after worried customers made bulk purchases.
Residents complained pharmacies were profiting from the panic.
"Look at the lines there, how much medicine they've sold and how much they've put prices," said pensioner Maria Teodorovich. "People are buying up everything they see."
In Kiev, residents said flu medicines were hard to find.
"I've been to so many pharmacies and can't find medicines anywhere. And flu is on its way," said pensioner Yelena Mikhailova, covering her face with a paper tissue.
As of this writing, there are reports of as many as 48 deaths attributed to this `pneumonia’, and as many as 150,000 influenza cases.
Admittedly not a huge number of deaths given the number of cases, but deaths are generally under-counted and are often a `trailing indicator’ in an outbreak. Additionally, there have been media reports of a few cases involving a `hemorrhagic pneumonia’, which has also raised concerns.
Whether this outbreak constitutes anything out of the ordinary is impossible to tell at this juncture, but it has aroused enough interest that the WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) team will travel to the Ukraine next week.
You’ll find earlier coverage of these events in:
WHO Dispatching Team To Ukraine
Ukraine Update: H1N1 Quarantine
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