LA Times - You're on Your Own (flu)

[realFedUp]

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-flu15oct15,0,5965215.story?coll=la-news-comment-editorials

EDITORIAL
You're on Your Own

October 15, 2004

How can any government be considered effective if it can't provide protection for its citizens against a public health danger as serious and predictable as the flu? That question apparently hasn't occurred to President Bush or Sen. John F. Kerry, who both seemed stumped when asked in Wednesday's debate to explain why the closure of a single plant in Britain had cut America's flu vaccine supply by half.

Kerry dodged the question completely. Bush, after announcing that he will skip his own flu shot (is that really a good idea for the U.S. president?), said the problem arose when U.S. regulators prohibited "contaminated medicine" from being imported from "a company out of England." In fact, it was British regulators shuttering the Liverpool plant of an American company, Chiron, after they discovered contamination with a bacterium that can sicken or kill people with poor immune systems.

snip

The Food and Drug Administration, which has blocked legislators' attempts to let patients import U.S.-made drugs from Canada on the grounds that it can't adequately inspect pharmacies there, says it relied on Chiron for information about its plant and had no idea that the facility was in danger of being shut down. Yet on Aug. 25, Chiron reported that 4 million doses of the vaccine had become contaminated, and U.S. officials took no action.

On Thursday, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson said he had dispatched an FDA team to Chiron's facility. But where were those inspectors two months ago? Thirteen months ago, the federal Institute of Medicine issued a report saying flu vaccine shortages were inevitable because the nation's production and distribution system was so fragile. Again, no action.
continued

[Skittles]

1. I will not try to get a flu shot this year

I'd be afraid a child or old person or chronically ill person wouldn't get theirs if I got mine. I had the flu once many years ago and got seriously ill and have had a flu shot ever since. It makes me very angry that something like this could be allowed to happen.

[realFedUp]

2. It made the editorial board angry also...but they blame Bush & Kerry

for not making it a larger point in the debates.

[Skittles]

3. neither of them seemed prepared to discuss the issue

very disconcerting

[realFedUp]

4. I think Bush was prepped a bit....

but saying that he wouldn't get a shot
was miles short of a real answer to why
this country can't produced a yearly
flu vaccine to cover anyone who wants it.

[Skittles]

6. the idea that the president wouldn't get a flu shot

is utterly ridiculous. Not that I'm saying that asshat is a president.

[depakid]

5. Curious as to what Howard Dean might have to say

I think Kerry was wise to keep his mouth shut, because he probably didn't have any more of a clue than most of us about it. After all, he's not a physician or a public health professional. Better that he delegate the issue to the experts than blatantly LIE and/or sound stupid like Bush... especially since he doesn't have the corrupt American media to run cover for him.