Should families stockpile Tamiflu?
• NO, do not stockpile Tamiflu or other antiviral medicines. If many people get Tamiflu when it is not needed, there is a bigger chance that the virus will become resistant to the medicine and it will not work at all. We are not sure that Tamiflu will work against the particular type of virus that causes a pandemic. You should only take Tamiflu when a health care provider tells you it is the right medicine. • Federal, state, and local governments are developing plans to distribute vaccines and antivirals in case of pandemic influenza. These plans are designed to make sure that basic services (such as water, sanitation, health care, fire, police) are maintained even if a very large number of people are absent from work, and to make sure that the fewest number of people die from pandemic flu.
