Wait For It!

We keep saying "It's Not Over!" We know no one is listening but still we shout in the wilderness because someday soon someone will. One of the down sides to the lack of deaths numbers and news reports of the "decline" is that people aren't getting in line to get the shot. It also could be that those in the "high risk" category have begun to reach their tipping point. We all still can't get the shot though some of us have been inoculated.

Though we can only speak to the national coverage and not the local. We'll make every effort to remedy this by this weekend to give you both actual on the spot coverage with pictures. According to Chicago Tribute, Boston.com, Cybercast News, Nevada Appeal:

Flu vaccine clinic turnout lower than expected - Officials were ready for 5,000 - Ann Scales, spokeswoman for the Boston Public Health Commission, said the turnout was lower than expected because fewer reported cases of flulike illnesses have been reported recently and because many city residents are already vaccinated. “That has suppressed interest in the vaccine,’’ she said. Panic about the swine flu is waning as many people with symptoms are opting to stay home and ride out the illness rather than going to their doctor, she said.

We still love former Governor and now Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, but we think she's "going rogue!" When she came to DC on the 19th of November to tout the increase in supplies we didn't have the vaccine. The conference doesn't appear anywhere on the website nor in our search through the normal media sources. Since that appearance Sebelius has said heads will roll! We believe her and it's not just because she scares us.

“Right now, as of today, we have 50 million doses not available and more is coming each and every day,” Sebelius told the crowd of about 100 people that gathered at the center to hear her and Spanish-speaking representatives from the CDC. “And so, if you haven’t had the opportunity to have a vaccination yet, more will be available.”

Almost ten (10) days later in the Maryland suburbs supplies were still lacking.

US struggles to keep up with demand vaccine - Just outside the capital, Washington DC, Mary Anderson, at the health department of Montgomery County, Maryland, said her region had only received half of vaccine order they placed. One the countries hardest hit by the swine flu outbreak, the US was struggling to keep up with demand, even as public concerns over the safety of the vaccine kept some people away from the queues for the jab. - Monsters and Critics News

The former Kansas governor added this at the earlier gathering:

“The vaccine will be available, and it will be free, and it will be available to everyone,” Sebelius said. “I’m here to remind you that the good news is we do have a vaccine. It does work against this flu, and it is safe."

We emphasize this statement because while the now Health and Human Services Secretary made it plain the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that they have the 2009-2010 seasonal flu vaccine ready.

FDA Approves Agriflu Seasonal Influenza Vaccine - Another option to prevent illnesses caused by subtypes A and B influenza virus - Novartis is required to conduct further studies to verify that the vaccine will decrease seasonal influenza disease after vaccination. The company also manufactures another licensed seasonal influenza vaccine, Fluvirin, for use in the United States. Fluvirinis approved for people ages 4 years and older. Agriflu is not intended to protect against the 2009 H1N1 influenza.

That's right the FDA says they don't know if it will work but they do know it won't work against the H1N1 virus - you know the one that's been killing us. She's really going rogue and she's not named Sarah! She's the other former female governor whose name starts with an "S!"

The problem with people not getting the H1N1 vaccine is being highlighted now that the supplies are becoming available but again primarily to the "most vulnerable" is fear and ignorance.

H1N1: Why I'm Willing To Get Vaccinated - Tyrone Jones - A 13-year-old child is five times more likely to contract the H1N1 than an adult because the virus feeds off less developed immune systems. H1N1 is a very contagious disease and nobody is naturally immune to it. Knowing this is enough to get me to run out for a vaccination. - NCMONLINE

Just last week we heard this:

Lessons learned from the H1N1 flu vaccine shortage - Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced Tuesday that a major review and proposed overhaul of the government's efforts to develop new protections against pandemics, bioterrorism and other health threats has been initiated.

The shortage is currently a non-issue, as about 69 million doses are now available, however, the virus is still spreading widely and a third wave could occur later this winter, said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden. CDC reports in the Alabama region (Region 4), we are still experiencing elevated levels of activity, and our region has reported 37 pediatric deaths. - Baltimore Examiner

The Washington Post noted that we may have to wait a year to determine how many heads rolled:

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Tuesday that she ordered the evaluation in part because the H1N1 vaccine shortage had highlighted the nation's dependence on antiquated technology. "We'll look for the fastest ways to move to new technologies that will let us quickly produce countermeasures that are more dependable and more robust," she told the American Medical Association's Third National Congress on Health System Readiness, which is being held in Washington. "Not just for flu and not just for infectious diseases, but for all the public health threats we face today." The review will be led by Nicole Lurie, assistant secretary for preparedness and response, and will be complete by "early next year," Sebelius said. - Washington Post

The rogue secretary's remarks can be found at Health and Human Services (HHS along with her testimonies and statement on the issues of the day. She's getting things done. It's up to us to queue up and get the shots when they're available. Unfortunately not enough of us are doing that. We can't wait until the lines open up for the rest of us so we can get the protection as well. Unfortunately everyone doesn't feel that way and their ignorance is resulting in their deaths.

Swine flu deaths higher among minorities, state says - Blacks and Hispanics in Illinois have died from swine flu at double the rate it has killed whites in the state, and swine flu has hospitalized the two minority populations at more than triple the rate for whites. Less access to health care, more chronic health problems and lower vaccination rates among the two minority groups probably play a role, Illinois officials said Friday at a meeting in Chicago where minorities were encouraged to be inoculated. - Chicago Tribune

Now that we know - though it's not our job - it's our mission like the rogue former Governor now HHS Secretary to do something. It's a matter of life and death.

IT'S HERE! The Flu is HERE!

The flu is HERE! The vaccine is coming but it's going to be late. The CDC report (issued every Friday at 11AM then but NOT now) what was shown was too plainly understood. The method of reporting and the way the CDC "made it plain" has been removed so you won't and can't understand now bad the situation is and will be.

The Health and Human Services said the programs for our shots should be ready by the time the landlord switches off the air and turns on the heat, in October. That is and will be too late. The fact that the deaths are preventable is the real tragedy. In Virginia the state says that their latest REPORTED death occurred to a female who "had an underlying health condition." We're awaiting a response to our call on what her underlying condition was to which we all might be susceptible to a H1N1 Flu death.

SWINE FLU	Cases	Deaths
District of Columbia OLD	43	0
Maryland	766	4
Virginia	300	2

Can you trust the figures? No! They don't even report the figures anymore. Or if they do they report it its in a way that is not clearly understood. By design? We're not certain. Reporting the numbers and then not when they did and it was clearly understood. That seems strange to us. Well then all it takes is a call to the proper person listed as a contact except the people who answer the phones for the contact person aren't even aware of the current numbers.

We are region three (3) where the CDC reports that has been an over twenty-seven (27.1) per cent increase for this area. Region III consists of: DE, DC, MD, PA, VA, WV. Only Region IV has a greater rate of infection and consists: AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN.

The definition of an epidemic: "affecting or tending to affect a disproportionately large number of individuals within a population, community, or region at the same time." 36,000 people die EVERY year from the flu which fits the definition of SOME of the worst epidemic in US history. "1942-53 Polio continued to ravage the U.S., peaking in 1952 with about 60,000 cases. Worst epidemic since 1916." This is what is expected when the season starts in October. This is prior to the season with a total deaths so far of 353 preventable lives. In Virginia 1,000 citizens are EXPECTED to die from the flu in a normal year. In Maryland 1,000 citizens are EXPECTED to die as well. Hopefully it won't be us and if the trend continues it'll probably be a child and senior that we know and love. We deserve better with our knowledge and technology we deserve better. Let's "thin the herd" through competition and accomplishments not through neglect and ignorance.

Living & Dying

There have been two more deaths in our lives. Our name sake's twin sister died on Friday before midnight only hours before the family reunion. Today before writing this blog we learned that a young man died from a heart attack that one of us had known. What ties this together with what we do here is that their children preceded them in death. Although their sons' deaths were untimely the young man's death which could have been prevented.

Our favorite former female governor and secretary of HHS reported today about the need to protect our children and save the suffering health care system by addressing the issue of obesity. "...(E)nding obesity would save our health care system fifty percent more dollars than curing cancer." At the Weight of the Nation conference Kathleen Sebelius added that we're saying we want to lose weight but: "Only three in ten Americans said they were actually trying to lose weight. And only one in ten said they had a specific plan to do so."

I'm over weight and before her death Aunt Pearlie was inactive and while neither of us were obese we didn't and I don't do enough to stay fit. (Mamie her twin lived a life as a slim and trim woman.) So what can we do to fix our fat behinds America well not much according to the Recommended Community Strategies and Measurements to Prevent Obesity in the United States. Anything that's not our fault and doesn't take any additional effort on our part we love. Their suggestions and causes of our weight gain: "Environmental factors (including lack of access to full-service grocery stores, increasing costs of healthy foods and the lower cost of unhealthy foods, and lack of access to safe places to play and exercise) all contribute to the increase in obesity rates by inhibiting or preventing healthy eating and active living behaviors."

$350 Mil Flu Funds

Friday after we went to print the Health and Human Services laid out the amounts and locations for Public Health Emergency Response and Hospital Preparedness Grants. Cash strapped California receiving the lions' share of federal funds for emergency response.

While Los Angeles and Chicago received more federal money than most states and other jurisdictions the differences in percentages aren't that substantial. Both Virginia and Maryland who have had twice as many deaths than the DC do receive more funds but by size and distribution costs may have factored in the funding. We've asked Health and Human Services what formula was used to determine who got how much and why. The formula used to distribute the grants was based on population size.

On Sunday CNN's Wolf Blizer on the State of the Union got H&HS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to preview that another billion dollars would be spent funding a soon to be created a safe and effective vaccine. It's not until some seven minutes into the over eight minute interview she says: "We have about a million cases of H1N1 right now in the United States right now..." "...The good news is that it's not terribly lethal right now. We had about 170 deaths, that's too many but we know 36,000 die each year with seasonal flu..." One is too many, but a death that results from a reckless disregard for the consequences is substantially different than an infant or elderly family member who needlessly dies. Let's prevent the preventable.

The Flu is Coming

The flu is coming! I mean the vaccine is coming. The vaccine is coming! With 170 deaths and counting according to the current CDC report (issued every Friday at 11AM) but with some states showing widespread infections the president's Health and Human Services said the programs for our shots should be ready by the time the landlord switchs off the air and turns on the heat, in October. Or for the homeowners among you that means as soon as you get to changing the air filters in your furnaces.

SWINE FLU	Cases	Deaths
District of Columbia	43	0
Maryland	686	2
Virginia	300	2

Can you trust the figures? No! Even in the case of the District of Columbia in their last report to the city their figures issued June 19, 2009 their count has higher than the posted CDC report figures. Maryland doesn't release their current figures on the website but they did issue a press release about their second death WBOC TV16 reports the figure at 686. Virginia's site publishes their numbers by county and their numbers issued yesterday are higher than published with an additional death as well.