6:00. ved goonighsam t.con. have a good night. >> couric: tonight the leaders of the united states, canada and mexico unite to fight a common enemy the h1n1 flu virus. i'm katie couric. also tonight collision over the hudson. as divers find the wreckage of the plane involved in that deadly crash with the tourist helicopter, investigators tried to determine what happened. >> a flight from houston lands in the twilight zone. a plane load of passengers stuck on the tarmac all night long. >> and a right of passage, how riding a bike can put special needs children on a path to a better life. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone. it was three neighbors getting together to talk about their mutual problems and challenges. in this case, the neighborhood is north america. the president of the united states joining the leaders of canada and mexico for their annual summit. they vowed to work together to fight the h1n1 flu virus hitting this part of the world especially hard. but on other issues it may be more difficult to find common ground. our chief white house correspondent chip reid traveled to mexico with president obama. >> reporter: at the summit of north american leaders in guadalajara, mexico, it was all smiles and handshakes in public but behind closed doors there appeared to be little progress on a series of long-running contentious disputes. while president obama said all the right things about helping mexico defeat silent drug cartels. >> united states will remain a full partner in this effort. >> reporter: mexican president philippe calderon was left frustrate bid failure to shake loose millions of dollars of aid held up in congress by democrats who object to their human-rights record and while they talked about the importance of trade and the biggest free trade zone in the world. >> we need to expand that trade, not restrict it. >> reporter: they failed to resolve mexico's complaint about a u.s. ban on mexican trucks crossing the mexican border due to safety concerns. but there's one new and urgent issue that appears to be getting fog but cooperation. responding to a second wave of the h1n1 flu virus that is expected to hit north america in a matter of weeks. >> there will be people who are going to be getting sick in the fall and die. >> the virus got its start here in mexico in april scaring tourists away as it becaoo a pandemic spreading to the u.s. and 167 countries around the world. but it is the america's that are bearing the brunt of 1154 confirmed deaths, 1008 of those in north and south america, 436 in the united states. medical officials are closely watching south american countries like argentina where it's now winter to get an idea of how the virus might behave when it hits the u.s. as temperatures cool. >> i think we're doing& everything we can to prepare for this fall, including working to prepare a vaccine for distribution this fall. >> reporter: tomorrow the president goes to new hampshire for a town hall on health-care reform. it should be lively to say the least. activists on both sides are expected to show up in large numbers. katie. >> all right, chip reid in guadalajara, mexico, championship thank you. from our cbs news medical team dr. jennifer ashton what is the winter flu season in the southern hemisphere telling us about what the flu is doing and what we may be facing this fall. >> well, katie, the cdc has field crews across the southern hemisphere. and what they're seeing so far is high numbers affecting young people ages 5 to 25 24, exactly as we've seen in this country in the past spring. and we know that the flu virus does hit that age group particularly hard. but they don't appear to be suffering in a more severe form. >> is there a chance the flu could be worse here or get worse come fall? >> it doesn't appear so, katie, it really could stay the same, just as it has in the southernis em hphere but there is still is cause for concern. this particular h1n1 virus could mix with seasonal flu and become a new strain. that could result in changes in the cell structure of the virus which could then make it more contagious and more severe. >> couric: meanwhile i understand that there is an interesting story out tonight about the benefits of breast-feeding when a woman has a family history of breast cancer. what can you tell us about that. >> that's right, katie, this very important. it comes from the nurses health study. and looked at over 60,000 women who had a high risk of breast cancer in either a mother or a sister. and found that those who breast fed reduced their own risk for breast cancer by 59%. >> couric: that's incredible, isn't it? >> absolutely. and we know that there are a lot of reasons to breast-feed, katie from reducing your risk of ovarian cancer to accelerating weight loss after pregnancy and it is certainly good for babies. this is one more reason women should be encouraged to breast-feed or pump. >> couric: but they don't know why it is so beneficial in this particular group, do they. >> they don't, it will be ongoing research for sure. >> couric: dr. jennifer ashton thank you so much. now to the tragedy over the skies of new york city. nine people killed saturday when a small plane and a helicopter collided and plunged into the hudson river. today police found a man's body in the wreckage of the plane but could not dislodge it. bob orr is following the story. >> reporter: new york city police divers working in strong currents and low visibility, pinpointed the wreckage of the small plane about 650 feet below the surface of the hudson river. as recovery crews prepared to lift the aircrtee ,rwaem the water, 911 calls were released revealing multiple eye witnesses saw the plane and a sightseeing helicopter collide in midair. >> an airplane just hit a helicopter. the helicopter went down into the water. the plane, i'm not sure what happened, where it is. >> i saw the last of it. and i saw something explode and then something fall after that. so i would hurry. >> but there was no rescue. all six people on the chopper and the three on the plane died. remnants of the hicopter now have been recovered and eight of the bodies found. >> investigators say the helicopter flown by jeremy clark lifted off from a west side manhattan heliport at about the same time as a piper, and pilot steven altman let teterboro airport. the two turned southbound over the river flying under visual flight rules meaning the pilot and not air-traffic controlerse were solely responsible for keeping a safe distance. sources say the plane's pilot closed in on the back of the helicopter and apparently never saw it as his right wing clipped the chopper's rotor. this photo was taken just after impact. the helicopter may have been in the pilot's blind spot. and neither aircraft had equipment to warn crews of an impending collision. traffic and collision avoidance systems called t-cats are required on larger passenger planes. and while t-cat is available for smaller aircraft t is expensive, about $10,000 per plane and not required. the crash now is renewing calls for the faa to clamp down on the congested airspace all around new york. the east river you might remember was closed to most small planes after one hit a building there three years ago. the corridor over the hudson though remains crowded but open. >> couric: bob orr, thanks very much. now to a very different air travel nightmare this one happened on the ground. a flight that normally takes about three hours lasted nearly 12. and cynthia bowers tells us the passenger as board continental express flight 2816 operated by expressjet airlines spent half of that time parked on the tarmac overnight. >> reporter: the flight from hell began routinely enough, the em braur -- emrauer regional jet departed houston at about 9:30 friday night. but as it neared minneapolis controllers warned pilots the weather was too rough to land. the plane was divert to rochester, minnesota, and landed just 90 miles from its planned destination. but there was a problem. the pilots had reached their maximum work hours so they had to wait for a new crew to complete the flight. that meant the passengers jammed into the narrow jet with a single seat on one side, two on tthhe oer were left sitting on the tarmac for almost six hours. they were offered no food, and one drink. inside the cramped confines babies cried and the plane's single toilet backed up and began to reek. >> you're almost numb because you're so exhausted so you kind of doze off but you can't really sleep because babys are crying and the smells are getting worse. >> the crew told passengers they were being kept on the pain because rochester security screeners had left for the night so they got off they couldn't get back on. the next shift of screeners showed up around 6:00 a.m. the passengers were then let off the plane and into the airport. at 8:28 in the same plane but with a different crew, they left rochester. and finally, touched down in minneapolis at 9:15 almost 12 hours after they took off. >> everybody just went out to the continental counter and they were emotional and they were screaming and they were yelling. >> reporter: this flight's tortorous five and a half hour wait makes them exceptional but according to the dot it's all too common. in june alone airline passengers sat on the tarmac for three hours or more on 278 flights. >> the incident has renewed calls for a passenger bill of rights prompted by the jetblue fiasco in 2007. 10 planes sat on the tarmac at new york's ice-bound jfk airport for up to ten and a half hours. the bill still has to the been voted on. continental today called the incident unacceptable and said that it's offering passengers refunds and a voucher for free travel. but after what they have been through, it's unclear how many of those passengers will take them up on that trip, even if it is free. cynthia bowers, cbs news, chicago. >> couric: overseas, tokyo is bracing for a direct hit from a major typhoon that could bring flooding and mudslides to the capitol. an even more powerful storm hit taiwan and china killing dozens as it unleashed as much as 80 inches of rain. more now from barry petersen. >> reporter: it was not one by two storms that roared across asia. the first making landfall in taiwan where it dumped an estimated six and a half feet of rain in some areas, bringing down a building that was once a hotel and which fortunately had been evacuated. but in southern taiwan, there are frantic rescue efforts to find some 600 people who may be buried under a mudslide. the storm then moved into china forcing a million people to flee coastal areas and head inland. the chinese government used cell phones to send warnings, an estimated 8 million text messages telling people to flee to higher ground. but a typhoon raking across taiwan and china wasn't asia's only worry. a second typhoon headed directly for japan. this storm triggered deadly mudslides and warnings across japan, there may be more to come. authorities tonight have tokyo on alert. they are hoping that the storm will skim along japan's eastern coastline. but also telling people to be ready on tuesday just in case the typhoon changes course and aims directly for japan's biggest city. barry petersen, cbs news, tokyo. >> couric: and coming up next here on the "cbs evening news", president obama strikes a deal with drugmakers. what they're getting in return for supporting his plan for health-care reform. the doctor said it could be alzheimer's. i didn't want to believe it. but that night at the bowling alley... where's alice? oh, there she is! she seems a little confused. that's when i knew... i couldn't wait. our doctor told us prescription aricept... is the only treatment proven effective... for all stages of alzheimer's. studies showed aricept slows the progression of symptoms. it improves 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reporter: while much of the health care debate has been carried out publicly, some very private negotiations have gone on too, between the white house and the pharmaceutical industry. so private neither side will release all the details yet they've potentially involved millions of americans. sources say negotiations involving the white house and the pharmaceutical industry shifted too fast forward in mid-june. president obama had just taken a serious hit on the escalating cost of his health-care plan and needed a shot in the arm. days later he got it with the full backing of the pharmaceutical industry and its promise to save americans $80 billion in health-care costs. >> this just part of the legislative process, working with industry is part of getting this done. and the great thing is the pharmaceutical industry and others in the health care sector are supporting reform this time. >> but what did the pharmaceutical industry get in return. initial reports said the white house agreed not to seek price controls on drugs for seniors on medicare and would to the support importing cheaper drugs from canada, both the white house and the pharmaceutical industry now dispute that. but news of a back-room deal riled fellow democrats including a key committee chairman henry waxman. >> we're not bound by that agreement. we weren't part of it. and fee feel strongly that the drug companies shouldn't get off with a windfall at the expense of our seniors. >> whatever the case, the pharmaceutical industry is now so firmly in the president's camp it's developing plans to spend up to $150 billion promoting it with tv ads like this. >> the president and congress have a plan. >> and consumer watchdog dr. sydney wolf says there's reason for the public to be skeptical. >> we'll give you this. you'll give us this. all sort of off the record, not really incorporated in any kind of legislation. and i believe in the long run a very bad deal for the american public even if it's a good deal for the drug industry. >> the president may have won crucial support from the pharmaceutical industry but the question is whether that could jeopardize support among democrats and the public. sheryl attkisson, cbs news, washington. >> couric: in los angeles the coroner's office today completed its investigation into michael jackson's death but it will keep the details sealed while the police look into whether anyone should face criminal charges. detectives have been investigating jackson's doctor who reportedly told investigators he gave the pop star a powerful anesthetic just hours before his death. >> when we come back, who's winning the war in afghanistan? you might be surprised by what the top u.s. general is saying. the $100 cream. flabbergasted when we creamed the $700 cream! for under $30 regenerist micro-sculpting cream hydrates better than 32 of the world's most expensive creams. fantastic. phenomenal. regenerist. ♪ ♪ to my family [ female announcer ] clean you can see. 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journal" general stanley mcchrystal says the taliban noha uve thepper hand and the war has reached what he called a critical and decisive moment. last months was the deadliest of the war for u.s. troops with 45 deaths. in july of last were 20, t were 20, 14 in july of 0ee. lara logan is our chief foreign affairs correspondent. is general mcchrystal really that pessimism. >> no according to one of his top aides i spoke to a few hours ago. he said the general was speaking in a very specific context. that in certain parts of the country in the eyes of the people the taliban have gained the upper hand but this does not apply to the whole of afghanistan. >> couric: we're hearing he may request an additional 45,000 u.s. troops on top of the 2 1now already detroit, is that true? >> well, general mcchrystal likely to request more troops it. the exact number is not known at this point. he has not yet decided. and there were three sets of figures on the table. and so i mean he will make his recommendation in the coming weeks. >> couric: just how much we're not sure. meanwhile the elections are august 20th. do you think people will be able to vote freely throughout the country? >> well n large parts of the country, yes, they'll be able to vote. but in the parts of the country, where, for example, general mcchrystal say the taliban have gained the upper hand, they will have a very difficult time. the taliban wants the elections to fail am they want the u.s. to fail and they will be doing everything they can to stop people go together polls. >> couric: meanwhile the obama administration announced today it is preparing some 50 benchmarks to measure success because congress is getting antsy about this war. do you think that's a reliable way to measure progress? >> benchmarks can be a double-edged sword and it's very difficult with counterinsurgency because it is a long-term strategy. it takes years to see results. and it only takes 15 seconds to blow up a building or to blow up a road.