Thank you, Madam Chair.
In terms of the overall plan that was adopted, the pandemic plan was established back in 2006, defining the different roles and responsibilities of federal, provincial, and municipal governments, and so on. Within the pandemic plan, there are a number of areas identified: roles and responsibilities, vaccine development, and pandemic vaccine or antiviral stockpiling. Those are all within that plan. They are being implemented at different stages in how we're responding to H1N1, depending on the situation we're coming across. It's a plan that's being modified or updated as we deal with the situation. It is the overall plan that defines the roles of the federal government, provinces and territories, municipalities, and health care providers. There are a number of agencies involved in the implementation of the plan.
The announcement made last week relating to the H1N1 vaccine and how much we need to purchase is part of the plan; part of the plan is to purchase the vaccine. To do that, we needed to have conversations with the provinces and territories to make decisions on the number of vaccines we would purchase, and then to place our order. So that was announced when we made those decisions.
Today we're working with private industry to assist small businesses to respond to H1N1, how they can better prepare themselves and get the information they need to manage their businesses as we go into the fall season.
So the plan outlines all of those pieces, and we are implementing them at different stages as we deal with the H1N1—and we are at different stages. So as we learn more, we share more. As we learn more about it, there are certain things that are triggered. And come the fall, the guidelines will be developed for schools, health care providers, private industry, and so on, and who will get vaccine first and how. That, and the timing of it, will all unfold as we go along. Again, that requires research and working with the provinces and territories.
One other example is that the Public Health Agency's national microbiology laboratory has been in partnership with intensive care units across the country to learn more about the severe cases in order to ensure that when we do the guidelines for the fall, the people who require the vaccine most will receive it first. This will allow us to make an informed decision in terms of prioritizing implementation, and so on, come fall with the vaccine. That's an example of how the provinces and territories are collaborating in developing the guidelines for the fall.
Dr. Butler-Jones may want to add to that. But the pandemic plan is at different stages, depending on what we're dealing with related to H1N1.