Though everyone is stressing the necessity of the H1N1 vaccine, there has been a controversy over parents not wanting their children to get the shot and that it hasn’t been tested enough. There is also the concern that no one is enforcing who gets the vaccine first. And what about international travelers? Are they being screened for swine flu and can infected people come and go as they please? Is there even enough of the swine flu vaccine?
There are so many questions and so much information out there, but sometimes it gets jumbled and misinterpreted. It is always best to look at multiple sources to make sure that what you’re reading and hearing is true (at least at the moment).
One of the main questions is who is actually getting the swine flu? Are people too scared? One example of a state whose citizens are iffy about the vaccine is Tennessee. According to The Tennessean, only 38 percent of the 716 Tennesseans polled on the phone plan on getting vaccinated. It’s not just in Tennessee that people are afraid either. Another example is Pinellas County in Florida, where parents are uncertain about giving their children swine flu shots, according to the ABC Action News Web site. As a matter of fact, 38 percent of parents polled wouldn’t give their children permission to get vaccinated at school, according to MSNBC’s Web site.
However, many high priority people are still getting the vaccine. For example, in Pennsylvania, a hospital ordered the H1N1 vaccine for its high-risk patients and hospital workers, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. It seems that people who are more certain they will get the swine flu are more willing to get the vaccine.
How do doctors ensure only high-risk patients and hospital workers are only getting the vaccine and not everyone else?
According to the Chicago Tribune, there will be no “vaccine cops” enforcing who gets the shot first, though high priority people should be first in line. Supposedly patients will have to sign an agreement stating they are part of one of the high priority groups, which include pregnant women, parents or guardians of children under 6 months old, youth from 6 months to 24 years old, hospital workers and those with serious pre-existing conditions who are 25 to 64 years old.
In Henderson County, Kentucky, a sheriff is complaining that law enforcement officials should be higher up on the priority list, since they deal with sick people all the time, according to the Web site for Channel 14 (WFIE) news.
The next two questions about international travelers and the swine flu vaccine supply will be answered in the next article.
Sources:
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20091015/NEWS04/910150353/1018/NEWS01/MTSU+poll+finds+Tennesseans+suspicious+of+Obama++swine+flu+vaccine
http://www.abcactionnews.com/news/local/story/Parents-in-Pinellas-County-fear-Swine-Flu-Vaccine/R_FOf3c8rUyz3RqZqR1SOQ.cspx
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33212378/
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20091015_H1N1_flu_vaccine__Who_is_getting_what_when_.html
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/chi-flu-enforcement-29-sep29,0,1444228.story
http://www.14wfie.com/Global/story.asp?S=11316833