Anticipating the return of the H1N1 influenza next fall, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced $350 million in federal funding to help states, health agencies and hospitals prepare for another outbreak.

Pennsylvania is slated to receive $14.3 million in federal funds, including $10.6 million for a public health emergency response and $3.6 million in hospital preparedness grants.

The grants derive from a recent supplemental appropriations bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on June 24.

The state Department of Health will receive money based on a needs assessment it is preparing. It will distribute the state allocation to health agencies based on a work plan it has been developing.

Michael Huff, state deputy secretary of health planning and assessment, said $7.9 million will be used for immunization and pandemic response activities, with $2.6 million to be allocated for laboratory upgrades and epidemiological and surveillance efforts. The health department still is awaiting details on the hospital funding.

"No one will tell you that's enough money," Mr. Huff said, "but for now it's hard to put a price tag on it. We know it will not be cheap to do what is necessary to mitigate the situation."

Efforts also are under way to develop an H1N1 vaccine, said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. But a new vaccine must undergo clinical trials to test for safety and effectiveness before it can be distributed for a national vaccination program to be administered to people without charge, she said.

Mid-October is the earliest date a vaccine would be available for public use.

"There is no decision yet whether a vaccination program will work, but we are preparing for one," Ms. Sebelius said. "It will be the end of August before we know if we have a safe and effective vaccine."

Ms. Sebelius announced the funding program and H1N1 update during a teleconference yesterday. The springtime version of the H1N1 flu targeted the young, with 15 the average age of infection. The flu generally proved to be a mild strain, she said.

For now, health officials are monitoring variations in the flu strain that occur during the flu season in the Southern Hemisphere. Several viral anomalies detected so far haven't raised alarm, she said.

Ms. Sebelius said 33,000 cases of H1N1 flu had been confirmed in the United States since April, with 3,400 cases requiring hospitalization. There have been 170 deaths nationwide.

But the total number of confirmed infections represents only a fraction of the total. Disease modeling by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated that a million people in the United States had become infected with H1N1.

Pennsylvania had 1,748 confirmed cases of H1N1 flu and four deaths.

Of the $350 million in federal funding available to states and territories, $260 million will go to state, regional and local health agencies, while $90 million is earmarked for state and local hospitals.

Federal health officials said they will begin distributing funds July 31.

HHS also has announced a $2,500 prize for the best and most creative public service announcement produced on Youtube (www.youtube.com) to get the word out about the H1N1 flu, prevention and preparedness. The deadline for the 60-second announcement is Aug. 17, with a chance that it will be broadcast nationwide.

More details about the H1N1 flu are available at www.flu.gov and www.hhs.gov.

While the H1N1 flu has raised considerable concern, the number of deaths from the seasonal flu still represents a more formidable health threat.

The CDC estimates that about 36,000 people died of causes related to the seasonal flu each year, on average, during the 1990s in the United States. That figure includes people dying from complications of flu.