So angry about the swine flu shot - Page 2

There is a shortage in Ontario. Glaxo Smith Kline did not come through with the number of doses they promised.

they have it in the states as well but that one is even harder to find

Woo-hoo! I just called my doctor's office and am scheduled to get my H1N1 vaccination at 4:30 today.

Here's a link to an overview of all the ingredients and contraindications for the Swine Flu vaccine: http://bit.ly/4skhki

In my county, all kids are considered at right - the target group goes up to age 24. All pregnant women. All first responders and health care workers. Then adults with chronic illnesses.

I understand a lot of counties and states are using the schools in a way to make sure that target population is taken care of most quickly, most efficiently, and most thoroughly, as opposed to parents going to their individual doctors. In many cases, such as the Obamas, the parents are not in the target groups for the first wave of vacccines.

And from what I've read about the big employers in NY getting the vaccine - again, decision of the state health department. Apparently the idea is to reach target populations quickly - and supposedly corporate health departments are getting small shipments which are meant for employees with chronic illnesses or are pregnant only. Obviously, large employers have greatest access to the largest number of people (like with the season flu shots - our office building also has three days of a flu clinic, and many shots are paid for by the employers). I agree, looks bad, and certainly is another area where the self-employed or those working in small businesses don't seem to be on the same playing field.

And, yes, big pharma isn't keen on vaccines due to low profitabilty, and to be fair, high risk of litigation, even where groundless. Look at the folks who keep insisting autism is directly related to vaccines - and how much money has been spent in that argument.

I got a phone call from my doctor yesterday saying they just got the vaccination in, and I went in at 10:45 this morning to get it. What amazed me is that the nurses there said they haven't got vaccines yet, and at the moment they won't be getting them for a while - the high risk patients are getting them all first. Usually the health care providers are the first to get them.

That's really not that long ago. First they had to isolate the strain, and then they had to create a vaccine that was effective against that particular strain (they don't just have vaccine recipes ready to go). Once they were sure the vaccine worked against H1N1 they had to do extensive testing of it to make sure it was safe for humans (given all the Guillam Barre fears), then they had to open this purpose facility and get it ready for production, get the egg farms going to produce the eggs for the vaccines, then make the actual vaccines. It takes 3 months to actually make the vaccine - longer than the seasonal flu vaccine, and then they had to deal with the fact that they needed all the supplies that go into actually making and storing vaccines.

Sanofi Pasteur has a contract to make 75 million H1N1 vaccines - that's a lot of supplies they need to procure that are already going into making the seasonal flu vaccines.

You need to understand the process of making the vaccine to understand why it's taken so long.

They did a story on 60 Minutes on Sunday which was really interesting and was the first look into the facility making the vaccines - http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/...n5451803.shtml

And why are they vaccinating entire schools? Have you seen how many schools have been shut down because H1N1 has spread like wildfire through a huge percentage of individual schools? That 60 Minutes story also has a follow up of a fit, healthy high school footballer who got hit with H1N1 and spent weeks on a respirator fighting for his life due to it. He's doing better now, but still in a very bad way and is going to need months of physical therapy before he gets back to anything like his old self.

Healthy kids are dropping like flies, and if the whole student population gets vaccinated, then there's going to be a LOT less potential carriers of H1N1 which makes everyone safer.

No, of course not. But it's easy to blame the President if you don't like him to begin with. And it's easy to get sucked into believing what we hear from the opposition if we don't stop to filter it for political agenda. One of the reasons we aren't getting the vaccine is that the countries we buy it from are choosing to put their own people as priorities. And it was not this administration who began the practice of buying from overseas. Don't ask me when it started, because I can't find an answer to that question. The general consensus seems to be that it's not profitable enough for the drug companies in this country to make the vaccine. And that would not surprise me at all, because everything is about the almighty dollar anymore.

I'm in a high risk group as well, and haven't seen any place that has the H1N1 vaccine.

I think this statement is very telling in how much the general public (or how little actually) knows about vaccines. It takes a minimum of 6 months to come up with the vaccine and then it starts to get produced so their timing on this has been fantastic to say the least.

I can NOT imagine the hysteria over this, for the makers of the vaccine.Can you imagine how stressed they are, trying to get enough out for the demand? I wouldn't want to be one of them.
One of my Brothers ex girlfriends just passed away yesterday to H1N1.She was only 40,and in good health.

Thanks for posting what the regiment is where you are.

I know Linda posted something about possibly school aged children being added to our list here, but I haven't seen/heard mention of it yet.

I'm hoping it comes soon. Having a 13yr old and a 9yr old, has me a bit scared when 2hrs away from me, kids the same age as my daughter have died from this flu.

They mentioned it on CBC yesterday morning Chris. You might be able to find it on their website - CBC Radio 1. It was on Metro Morning.

Wow, in Bulgaria all public schools are closed due to the swine flu this upcoming week. Just talked to cousins over there..There have only been 5 deaths in the entire country and they are closing the schools to prevent the spread.

Flu shots for Wall Street stirs ire in New York

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City health officials scrambled to explain themselves on Thursday in the wake of media reports about bankers who got scarce H1N1 flu vaccines through their employers.

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsO...5A44QI20091105

Got to give Morgan Stanley credit for donating their doses to hospitals. Even if it was for appearances' sake, at least they know what order their priorities should be in.

I had the opportunity to take the nasal mist through my work (they are rationing it, checking to see how many doses they need to send out). I did meet the criteria, but I turned it down. It's just as well in my case, because I woke up feeling bad this morning and now I feel awful. Maybe mine will go to someone who can benefit from it. I'm not 100% certain on the plan for inmates here in NC (my supervisor's the one who got the email). I believe she said after high risk staff members, they will give it to pregnant inmates and inmates with HIV.

I got an email today that it will be available to all students at my university starting next week

We're still waiting for it here

BUT.... I just read that elementry school children are eligable as of Nov.16.

Still nada for me, but at least my kids can get it.