FDA Approves 40-Minute Bird Flu Test (Medical News Today) The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Tuesday this week that it had cleared for marketing a new, faster test for detecting bird flu (influenza type A/H5N1) in humans that only takes 40 minutes to identify a marker protein that confirms the presence of the virus subtype from a swab. [News Source]

NEWS SCAN: Vietnam avian flu funds, biolab makes Superfund list, immunization stimulus, China’s healthcare plan (Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy) Vietnam receives avian flu support money Vietnam yesterday received a $7.3 million pledge from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to support two avian influenza projects, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported today. [News Source]

Backyard Flocks Test Negative For Bird Flu (WLKY Louisville) State Veterinarian Robert Stout said an outbreak of bird flu on a western Kentucky chicken farm did not spread to nearby backyard poultry flocks. [News Source]

Backyard flocks test negative for bird flu (FOX 19 Cincinnati) FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - State Veterinarian Robert Stout says an outbreak of bird flu on a western Kentucky chicken farm did not spread to nearby backyard poultry flocks. [News Source]

Rapid Test to Detect Bird Flu in People Approved (MedicineNet.com) Title: Rapid Test to Detect Bird Flu in People Approved Category: Health News Created: 4/9/2009 2:00:00 AM Last Editorial Review: 4/9/2009 [News Source]

Bird flu quarantine on British Columbia farms ends (AG Weekly) VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) _ A bird flu-related quarantine has been lifted on 22 poultry farms in the Fraser Valley east of Vancouver. The restrictions were lifted after three weeks of surveillance and testing by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. [News Source]

US offers US$7.3 million to combat bird flu (Nhân Dân) The US Government will provide US$7.3 million through the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to Vietnam to implement two projects on preventing and combating bird flu. [News Source]

UN aid to halt bird flu spreading to humans (Việt Nam News) HA NOI — The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation yesterday pledged US$7.3 million to help Viet Nam prepare for any outbreaks of avian influenza. The money will also be used to gather evidence for a transitional strategy on H5N1 vaccination. [News Source]