Nearly half-a-decade later, H1N1 returns to haunt Maharashtra: Death toll to overtake 2010 body count

The present outbreak of swine flu (H1N1) across the state is likely to become the worst since 2010. Maharashtra saw 669 deaths in 2010, and this year has already seen 667 fatalities. Hindustan Times reports that as many as 70 people have died of swine flu in Nagpur, while 61 have succumbed to this variant of the influenza virus in Mumbai. As it stands, a further 27 people in Maharashtra are seriously ill — and dependent on ventilator support — with swine flu, and 400 others are being treated at several of the state’s hospitals. [caption id=“attachment_2430220” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] And according to Dr AK Niswade, dean, Nagpur Medical College, who was quoted in the report, “We are expecting a resurgence of the disease by October end. With the change in weather and the setting in of winter, transmission of the virus is at its peak.” A senior state health department official confirmed this notion, and told DNA that the months of August and September usually witness a high number of cases of swine flu. “In case of heavy rains in September, and if the October heat does not set in intensely, we are at risk,” the report quotes the official. Meanwhile, at the end of August, the perceived higher ‘positivity rates’ in patients tested at Mumbai’s private hospitals led Maharashtra Public Health Minister Deepak Sawant to tell The Times of India that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation would be investigating this phenomenon. A few days later, the state public health department ordered a cap on what it termed ‘indiscriminate testing for H1N1’, and provided accreditation to seven labs to ensure that ‘testing norms are followed’. Apart from the growing number of ‘positive’ cases, The Times of India reported that hospitals were exploiting public panic and ‘unnecessarily testing’ patients. According to the report, private labs charge between Rs 4,500 to Rs 6,000 per test, while in most private hospitals — with the added cost of ‘infection control and disposables’ — the cost can range from Rs 6,000 to Rs 9,000. The seven accredited laboratories are reportedly earning “crores every month from H1N1 testing” — a claim disputed by Dr BR Das from one of the accredited laboratories SRL Diagnostics, who is quoted as saying, “We are only carrying out the test as requisitioned by a doctor. Labs do not go and ask patients to get tested”. Whether or not positivity rates are inflated, and customers are being fleeced, the state’s rising death toll is a matter of major concern.