President Obama has declared 2009 H1N1 a national emergency making it  easier for U.S. medical facilities to handle a surge in flu patients by allowing the waiver of some requirements of Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health insurance programs. This declaration follows the announcement Friday by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that H1N1 is widespread in 46 of the 50 U.S. states, a level comparable to the peak of ordinary flu seasons but far earlier and with more waves of infection expected.

To learn more about this declaration, go to the EDEN Pandemic Flu web page.