U.S. Urges H1N1 Shots as Supplies Surge

I know you don't want it, because you know it's a joke, but you might as well take it anyway, because if not by injection they'll just spray it on your food. Plus, there's pie.

Meanwhile, these articles always bring big LOL's, even after all these months of helping to expose the swine flu fraud. It never gets old. The first two lines are just mint: vaccinations have been in short supply the entire season, yet the swine flu is waning anyway. But still, you'd better get your shot, because a lack of vaccination might cause a resurgence. It's just pure stupidity. Are there really people out there who read this and rush to the pharmacy?

Wall Street Journal -

The vaccine to fight the H1N1 virus is plentiful after weeks of short supply, and long lines have largely disappeared at clinics, pharmacies and doctors' offices.

But as infections have slowed, government officials now are trying to persuade more Americans they need the vaccine.

"We have a chance to lessen the impact or even prevent a third wave, and we need to seize that opportunity right now," said Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Only 20% of children received a swine-flu shot when it was offered at Alabama elementary schools recently, and part of the reason for the tepid demand appears to be "H1N1 fatigue," said Donald Williamson, Alabama's state health officer.

His state began to see a rise in cases when schools convened in mid-August, and visits to doctors for influenza symptoms peaked in early October. Now, he said, "There's a perception the worst is over, so why be vaccinated?"

U.S. government officials aren't certain whether another wave of the swine flu will emerge this winter, after sickening 47 million Americans so far. But they know they want people vaccinated.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated Tuesday about 60 million people have been vaccinated in the U.S.

New public-service ads on radio and TV feature young people, governors and congressmen urging people to get vaccinated. As fears have ebbed, officials hope to flag the continuing danger of the H1N1 flu. "The main message now is to get vaccinated and to try to make sure people take it seriously," a White House official said. "We want to educate people on why it's important without unduly scaring them."

The new push by the government to get people vaccinated comes after eight months of grappling with the eruption and spread of the new virus, which caused five times more deaths in young adults and children than during a regular flu season. Delays in vaccine deliveries this fall prompted public criticism and congressional hearings.

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