The nation's outbreak of the new H1N1 flu may have peaked except in New York, New Jersey and New England, a leading federal health expert said yesterday.

"In the country as a whole, influenza is starting to decrease," says Ann Schuchat of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency has tallied 6,764 confirmed or probable cases and 10 deaths nationwide, Schuchat says, more than half the global total of 12,954 cases reported yesterday by the World Health Organization.

Laboratory testing indicates that the virus commonly referred to as swine flu accounts for almost all of the flu viruses now circulating nationwide.

The CDC and WHO already are gearing up to produce a vaccine against the new virus.

Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the government has set aside $1 billion to accelerate vaccine development. HHS spokesman Bill Hall said yesterday that agency officials have signed contracts worth $660.5 million with three companies to produce crucial components of the vaccine. Novartis will receive $289 million and GlaxoSmithKline will get $181 million to produce the vaccine's active ingredient, made of a component of the virus, and a booster in case the active ingredient isn't potent enough. Sanofi-Aventis will receive $190.6 million to produce the active ingredient only.