Despite comparatively high mortality rate here in Argentina which had stoked fears that the swine flu virus had mutated, genetic testing has shown that it’s no different from northern strains. This is good news the northern hemisphere as it prepares for winter flu season. According to an Associated Press (AP) report, infection rates in Argentina have dropped, with many hospitals reporting open beds for the first time since epidemic began.

Though Argentina is one of the countries that has stopped publishing its death toll—Health Minister Juan Manzur said it was misleading because only very serious cases get tested—an AP survey of provincial reports found estimated the number to be some 248 deaths. This is comparatively very high to the US’s 353, as Argentina has one seventh the population.

According to the AP, Manzur puts the total number of infections at 100,000, which would mean the mortality rate is 0.2 per cent, a far cry below the 0.27 per cent of regular seasonal flu, and some say that 100,000 is an underestimate, which would further lessen the death rate. The major difference is that swine flu appears to be killing a statistically higher percentage of young people.

Meanwhile, with northern flu season just around the corner and rich countries buying up as many flu vaccines and antiviral drugs as they can, some fear that developing countries will get left out. “We’re confronting a situation in which the needs of millions of people cannot be subordinated to economic interests,” president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner said at a South American trade summit last week.