WHO on Flu: Prepare for Pandemic, Not Panic

Swine flu is about to be called a pandemic, but the World Health Organization (WHO) first wants to make sure countries are ready to handle it without panic.

As of yesterday, 73 countries have officially reported 25,288 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection, including 139 deaths. Map shows where. By June 3, 2009, all 50 states in the United States and the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico were reporting cases of novel H1N1 infection.

If it's confirmed to have spread into communities (not just individuals) in a second region beyond North America, WHO would raise the alert level from 5 to 6, or full-blown pandemic.

"One of the critical issues is that we do not want people to 'over-panic' if they hear that we are in a pandemic situation," said Keiji Fukuda, acting WHO assistant director-general.