VZCZCXRO3489
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDF RUEHDH RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHMA RUEHPB
RUEHPOD RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRL #0884 2031323
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 221323Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4674
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0050
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 0381
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 8109
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE USD FAS WASHINGTON DC 0147
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0801
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1514

UNCLAS BERLIN 000884 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/CE PETER SCHROEDER 
STATE FOR OES/IHB 
STATE FOR AID/GH/HIDN 
USDA PASS TO APHIS 
HHS PASS TO CDC 
HHS FOR OGHA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO KFLU ECON PREL SOCI CASC EAGR MX GM
SUBJECT: GERMANY H1N1 UPDATE: 1,818 CONFIRMED CASES 
 
REF:  A) Berlin 880, B) Berlin 876 and previous. 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: The number of H1N1 infections in Germany 
rose by 263 cases to a total of 1,818 on July 22.  The 
majority 
of new infections occurred abroad, mainly during travel to 
Spain.  German companies prepare for the new virus.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (U) The National Reference Center for Influenza at the 
Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced 263 new laboratory- 
confirmed cases of H1N1 in Germany in its July 22 press 
briefing.  This increases the total number of confirmed cases 
to 1,818.  New cases were distributed among fourteen federal 
states: Lower-Saxony (96), North Rhine-Westphalia (60), Baden- 
Wuerttemberg (34), Hesse (16), Rhineland-Palatinate (11), 
Berlin(9), Saarland (9), Thuringia (7), Saxony (7), Hamburg 
(4), Brandenburg (3), Schleswig-Holstein (3), Bremen (2), and 
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (2).  The majority of new infections 
occurred abroad, mainly during travel to Spain. 
 
¶3. (U) North Rhine-Westphalia remains the German state with 
the 
highest number of virus cases with a total of 603 followed by 
Lower-Saxony (422) and Baden-Wuerttemberg (220 cases).  Only 
30 percent (539) of all confirmed infections in Germany have 
resulted from domestic transmission. 
 
 
German companies prepare for an outbreak 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Media reports indicate that German companies are 
preparing for the pandemic and taking precautionary measures 
to protect employees against the virus.  Many companies, 
including car manufacturer Daimler and insurer Allianz, have 
increased their stockpiles of antiviral medication.  In 
addition, some companies such as steel giant Thyssen-Krupp 
reportedly established a crisis management task force. 
Precautionary measures also include distributing H1N1 
information brochures to employees and booking direct flights 
for business trips to avoid unnecessary stops at airports. 
 
 
BRADTKE