A severe flu pandemic would be disastrous for the US

A new report studied the effects a flu pandemic would have on the US economy and the results aren't pretty:

A severe flu pandemic "would almost certainly lead to a major economic recession," according to a new report from a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization.

The report, titled "Pandemic Flu and the Potential for U.S. Economic Recession," projected that a pandemic would kill 2.25 million people and force 87.75 million people to miss work for three weeks.
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"The U.S. is not prepared to face an economic shock of this magnitude," said Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America's Health, which issued the report. "While important government preparedness efforts focusing mainly on medical and public health strategies are under way, efforts to prepare for the possible economic ramifications have been seriously inadequate. Stepping up pandemic preparedness is vital to our national and economic security."
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Health experts say another flu pandemic is inevitable. They worry most about the possibility that the highly pathological H5N1 strain of bird flu could mutate, gaining the ability to spread easily from person to person.

The report said a severe outbreak would make at least 30 percent of the population ill, and would kill at least 2.5 percent of those who got sick. In the United States, that would translate into 90 million people getting sick and 2.25 million dying.

Tough numbers there. I really hope that someone in charge heeds the warning, because the assessment that "another flu pandemic is inevitable" is quite scary.