The World Health Organization is discussing whether to expand access to its private bird-flu database, as pressure mounts on the United Nations agency to do so as a way to spur wider research on the virus. Meanwhile, in an apparent effort to increase the amount of data available to scientists, the WHO will ask its 192 member states to adopt a resolution in May that includes a pledge to share virus data, Margaret Chan, the WHO's pandemic-flu chief, said yesterday. It isn't yet clear if the resolution will seek to make the data publicly accessible. In a related development, China is set to share a large number of virus samples that it has withheld for more than half a year, a WHO official said.
That is from and article by Nicholas Zamiska, published in today's WSJ. Read more at Effect Measure.