BELGRADE, Serbia – Serbia’s health authorities have ordered three million swine flu vaccines from Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG worth an estimated euro24 million ($36 million).

Health officials said Friday the first shipment of some 500,000 doses is to arrive next month, while the rest are due early next year.

Serbia’s health ministry on Wednesday proclaimed a swine flu epidemic, a declaration it hopes will help prevent a surge of the illness in the Balkan country.

The health ministry says swine flu recently spiked in Serbia, with about 270 proven cases and eight deaths , up from about 130 cases and two deaths at the beginning of November.