President Bush is to urge pharmaceutical manufacturers to come up with ways to mass produce vaccines for the avian flu virus, according to the White House.
An Indonesian paramedic takes a nasal swap sample from a suspected bird flu patient
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Mr Bush would meet tomorrow with the heads of major manufacturing companies and urge them to expand the capacity to mass produce a vaccine.
He said they have expressed concerns about liability issues.
The virus has already caused losses of $10 billion to $15 billion to the global poultry industry, with the heaviest losses in Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.
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The H5N1 avian influenza virus has killed or forced the destruction of tens of millions of birds and infected more than 100 people, killing at least 60 in four Asian nations since late 2003.