U.S. government to fully fund swine flu vaccines

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government will fully pay for any autumn vaccination program against the new H1N1 swine flu, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said on Thursday.

Although it is not certain Americans will be offered the vaccine, Sebelius said plans were on track for a mid-October vaccination program. "We have already appropriated about a billion dollars to buy the bulk ingredients," Sebelius told a swine flu "summit" of state and local leaders at the National Institutes of Health.

She said another $7.5 billion was available from emergency preparedness funds.