In 2009, Swine Flu, or H1N1, took the world by storm.  News quickly spread of Swine Flu spreading throughout both Europe and the Americas.  International travel decreased as people became concerned with the international outbreak.  According to the CDC, Novel H1N1 is “a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009. Other countries, including Mexico and Canada, have reported people sick with this new virus. This virus is spreading from person-to-person, probably in much the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread.”¹⁹

The WHO argued that because H1N1 was a new virus, which the general populace seemed to have little immunity to, the virus could cause “more infections than are seen with seasonal flu.”²⁰   On June 23, 2010, the U.S. Public Health Emergency for the disease expired and the WHO declared the global pandemic to be over.  Nonetheless, the virus will probably continue to spread and return during times prone to seasonal influenzas.²¹

For more information on H1N1 see the following websites:

http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/frequently_asked_questions/about_disease/en/index.html

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/

19  Source: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/

20  Source: http://www.who.int/csr/don/2009_06_09/en/index.html

21 Source: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/

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