President Bush has taken an important and necessary step in preparing the country for a possible flu pandemic.

While it’s impossible to predict if or when such a threat will arise, releasing details of the federal government’s response now gives state and local government the time to integrate them into their plans.

Bush’s proposal to spend $7.1 billion on preparedness – about $1 billion less than sought by Democrats in the Senate, but still a significant amount – demonstrates the seriousness of the danger if a highly contagious variant of the flu finds its way into the United States. Unfortunately, how he intends to spend the money falls short.

Under the president’s plans, state and local authorities would be the first line of defense against a flu outbreak, which makes sense. Local health officials would likely to be the first to identify an outbreak and have the necessary authority to slow the disease’s spread using quarantines. But the level of funding states will receive under the president’s plan doesn’t match the responsibility that they will be asked undertake.

The government plans to stockpile 81 million doses of antiviral treatments. Of that, states would be responsible for purchasing 31 million doses at an estimated cost of about $510 million. But of the $7.1 billion in funding to fight the flu, only about $100 million is being sent to states. Not counting other costs necessary to implement the president’s plans, states are left more than $400 million short. At the same time, Congress and the president are considering other cuts in funding for local and state health departments. Without adequate dollars available to prepare for a crisis, we fear states and localities won’t be able to meet their obligations.

The president’s plan moves the United States forward. It focuses on vaccines and improving the technology to make vaccines quickly. Modernized vaccine production will be crucial in an emergency, and it’s the right place for emphasis. Local health departments, however, can’t be left out of the operation. If they are, government’s response to a flu emergency could be fumbled as badly as the response to Hurricane Katrina.