Bio-era Launches Research Service on Economic Costs and Business Impacts of Avian Influenza
Business Impact of Avian Influenza Pandemic Could Reach Hundreds of Billions of Dollars -- New Service will Monitor and Analyze Developments for their Economic and Business Significance
Cambridge, MA (PRWEB) March 3, 2005 -- Bio Economic Research Associates, or
bio-era™ (www.bio-era.net), a
leading independent research and advisory firm providing analysis on the future
of the global bio economy, today announced the launch of a four month
multi-client research and advisory service to track the potential economic and
business impacts of Avian Influenza.
The service will provide
independent, expert research and analysis on the on-going crisis, and the
possible global financial and business implications in the first few months of
an influenza pandemic.
The service will provide:
- Bio-era’s
independent research and analysis on the economic impacts of Avian
Influenza
- Scenarios for the outbreak of pandemic influenza and the key
implications for business and industry, financial markets, governments, and
investors
- Regular teleconferences with bio-era experts and participants to
present and discuss the latest developments.
Under the leadership and
direction of bio-era Managing Director, James Newcomb, the service will deliver
a steady stream of bio-era research and analysis, as well as highly plausible
scenarios for the evolution of a pandemic outbreak, how government and public
health agencies and institutions are likely to respond, and the impacts on
regional economies and selected sectors of the global economy, such as
cross-border trade and travel, food, livestock, investment, insurance, financial
services, and manufacturing.
Participants are expected to include major
companies with significant market exposure to trade and economic disruptions,
investors, public health officials, researchers and analysts engaged in business
planning, risk managers, financial analysts, and government officials.
Avian Influenza and the Risk of a Global Pandemic:
In the aftermath
of the Indian Ocean tsunami, public health experts, including those from the
World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
are warning that the threat of a global influenza pandemic is greater than ever.
Recent events in Asia have created what some experts believe is a “perfect
storm” of circumstances that increase the risk that an influenza pandemic could
emerge. These circumstances include the endemic spread of avian influenza in
domestic poultry populations, public health problems related to the tsunami, and
the growing numbers of human cases of avian influenza.
According to WHO
officials, recent epidemiological and laboratory studies suggest that the virus
“may be evolving in ways that increasingly favor the start of a pandemic.” The
virus has reportedly become hardier, surviving several days longer in the
environment than earlier strains. It has also expanded its adaptability to a
range of mammalian hosts, including humans, tigers and domestic cats.
If
a pandemic flu emerges, the shock waves sent through the global economy would be
immediate and far-reaching. The SARS outbreak in 2002–2003, which according to
bio-era estimates may have caused economic damages of $30-$50 billion, provides
the most recent reference point for understanding the implications for
businesses and economic systems, and the speed with which some reactions are
likely to take place. And, though the SARS event was significant, an influenza
pandemic would likely have much more severe consequences.
Biology and
Borders: Emerging Disease Risks in Context:
Human disease risks fall in the
context of, and are linked to, a broader range of biological systems and
biosecurity risks that have been the focus of bio-era research and analysis
activities over the past two years. (See bio-era reports, “Biology and Borders:
SARS and the New Economics of Biosecurity”, and “Avian Flu: Evolving New
Responses to Emerging Diseases” (Feb 2004).
Bio-era also participated --
together with representatives of the CDC, WHO, Wildlife Conservation Society and
other institutions -- in meetings hosted by the Thai Ministry of Public Health
this past November, on the linkages between human, livestock, and wildlife
diseases. Bio-era also presented findings from its economic research to a
special session of the World Conservation Congress (IUCN) on emerging disease
issues.
The new multi-client service will extend and deepen bio-era’s
foundation of work on the potential economic and business consequences of a
possible Avian Flu pandemic, in the hope of contributing to the preparedness of
all participants.
Learning What to Watch
This service is designed to
help stakeholders address the following questions:
- What indicators should
the business community be watching with respect to pandemic influenza?
- If
human transmissible H5N1 broke out in Asia, what specific actions (travel
advisories, quarantines, travel restrictions, etc.) should we expect to be
implemented by governments and public health authorities?
- How would these
actions impact regional and global economies, and businesses operating within
and/or interconnected with, affected regions?
By using scenarios to
describe the kinds of events that might unfold in conjunction with a pandemic
flu outbreak, this project is intended to help better prepare participating
organizations in developing their own preparedness and response strategies.
To enroll in the service, or for more information, please visit http://www.bio-era.net or
contact Stephen C. Aldrich, President, at 617 876-2400, James Newcomb, Managing
Director, at 303 247-1171, or JoElyn McDonald, Director of Sales at 303
503-7743.
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb213603.htm