According to authoritative data from NIVEL, the Dutch institute tracking primary care, swine flu cases have declined steadily for two weeks.
An epidemic threshold is reached at 50 cases per 100,000 people. Two weeks ago, rates stood at 184 swine flu consultations per 100,000; now they've dropped to 113. Neighboring countries—Belgium, Luxembourg, England, and France—are seeing similar reductions.
This season marked a mild epidemic, with far fewer flu deaths than in severe outbreaks. Strikingly, younger people bore the brunt, while older adults were largely spared.
Vaccination remains key to containment. The government will supply 19 million doses to high-need countries while holding 2.2 million extra doses in reserve for safety.
