Two

UPDATE May 5: The two probable cases of H1N1 (swine) flu sent from Amherst College to the CDC for testing have been confirmed. All possible cases of flu at the College have already been treated as if they did have H1N1, so no further preventive measures are being instituted by the College at this time and all students are apparently doing well.
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Probable cases of H1N1 (swine) flu reported at Amherst College late Thursday night, according to the official statement. In addition, six additional students with flu-like symptoms are being treated as suspected cases, including two new cases this morning. Fortunately, none of the cases are serious and the students are isolated and responding to treatment.

Because these cases at Amherst College have not yet been confirmed, they are not yet registered on the CDC H1N1 Surveillance web site which still lists Massachusetts with two confirmed cases (the Lowell cases). Only once cases are confirmed by one of the few laboratories capable of processing the samples are they reported as such.

Meanwhile, the U.S. labs processing the growing influx of samples from suspected cases are apparently unable to keep up with demand. Some areas already hit with the virus, including New York City, are now not testing all suspected cases but just treating them as if they were H1N1 (swine) flu. This enables timely treatment but will result in a underestimate of flu cases reported if only laboratory-confirmed cases are reported.

In Mexico, for example, according to the WHO, there have been 156 confirmed cases and 9 deaths. Compared to the 141 confirmed cases and 1 death in the U.S. Only looking at those numbers would lead someone to believe that the outbreak in the U.S. was almost as bad as the outbreak in Mexico. According to a variety of other reports, however, Mexico has seen over 2,000 cases of this flu with as many as 150 deaths and the country has essentially been shut down in an attempt to stem the tide of the disease.

A poll on MSNBC asks "if the swine flu strain spread to your town, would you be willing to stay home?" At this point, 69.8% of respondents said "Absolutely, if it would keep me and my family safe." I wonder if 69.8% of Amherst stayed home today...