STATEMENT OF SENATOR EDWARD M. KENNEDY ON THE RE-RELEASE OF PANDEMIC FLU PLAN

Washington, DC -- Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy issued the following statement on the re- release of the Bush Administration’s pandemic flu plan. The plan, originally released last fall, did not address many critical issues that will become central if a pandemic flu outbreak were to occur in the United States. “Amid great fanfare last autumn, the Bush Administration released what was claimed to be a plan to fight pandemic flu. Now, we see that the original plan was inadequate and incomplete. Other nations have been implementing their plans for years – but we're reading ours for the first time now. These needless delays have put Americans at risk.” ###