VZCZCXRO2708
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDF RUEHDH RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHMA RUEHPB
RUEHPOD RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRL #1001 2261430
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141430Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4963
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0132
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 0398
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 8228
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE USD FAS WASHINGTON DC 0167
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0832
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1544

UNCLAS BERLIN 001001 
 
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: H1N1 UPDATE: 11,493 CONFIRMED CASES 
 
REF:  A) Berlin 997, B) Berlin 989 and previous. 
 
 
¶1. (U)  SUMMARY: The number of confirmed H1N1 infections in 
Germany increased by 390 new cases, bringing the total as of 
August 14 to 11,493.  The majority of new infections occurred 
abroad.  A dispute between the government and the health 
insurance companies over flu shot payments has been resolved. 
END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. (U)  At its August 14 press briefing, the National 
Reference 
Center for Influenza at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) 
confirmed a total of 390 new (laboratory and non-laboratory) 
H1N1 cases in Germany over yesterday.  This increases the 
total number of H1N1 cases to 11,493.   New cases were 
distributed among the federal states: Bavaria (119), North 
Rhine-Westphalia (69), Baden-Wuerttemberg (102), Hamburg (27), 
Hesse (21), Saxony-Anhalt (14) Saarland (13), Brandenburg 
(11), Saxony (6), Berlin (5), Lower-Saxony (2) and Bremen (1) 
 
¶3. (U)  According to RKI, 293 of the 390 new cases are 
attributed to people returning from travel abroad.  New cases 
include also non-laboratory H1N1 cases from people who 
exhibited symptoms after being in contact with a laboratory 
confirmed infected person.  So far, all new cases are 
reportedly mild. 
 
¶4. (U)  North Rhine-Westphalia remains the German state with 
the highest number of confirmed virus cases with a total of 
4,084, followed by Lower-Saxony (2,020) and Baden-Wuerttemberg 
(1,183 cases).  About 23 percent (2,601) of all confirmed 
infections in Germany have resulted from domestic 
transmission. 
 
 
Dispute over flu shot payments resolved 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U)  A local debate between the federal government and 
health insurance companies over who would bear the costs of 
H1N1 vaccinations this fall has been resolved.   In an 
agreement, a total of approximately 700 million euros would be 
used for the procurement of 50 million doses of the vaccine, a 
number to inoculate approximately a third of the German 
population.   In a meeting between Health Minister Ulla 
Schmidt (SPD) and insurance providers on August 13 in Berlin, 
parties agreed that the insurance providers would pay for half 
of the vaccination costs and the federal government would pay 
for the other half.  The insurance companies welcomed the 
agreement, saying that this would help avoid an increase in 
monthly premiums for consumers. 
 
BRADTKE