Christian Broadcasting News says flu vaccine is now key issue

[quaoar]

I find it very interesting that even the right-wing CBN is writing this from a pro-Kerry position.

http://www.cbn.com/CBNNews/News/041018f.asp

Flu Vaccine Shortage Now Key Campaign Issue

By Darla Sitton
CBN News Producer

October 19, 2004

CBN.com – (CBN News) - President Bush and Sen. John Kerry are both campaigning in Florida today. And the flu vaccine shortage has become a politically charged issue.

In Florida, hundreds of anxious seniors are clamoring for a flu shot that many doctors are unable to give.

< snip >

Kerry blames President Bush for the flu shot crisis in Florida and across the nation.

Kerry said, "If Halliburton made flu shots, there'd be more flu shots than oranges here. What's happening with the flu vaccine is really an example of everything this administration does: deny it, pretend it's not there and then try to hide it."

[quaoar]

1. Here's another item on the flu issue

from the Chicago Tribune

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/election2004/9972059.htm

"It's absolutely an issue that could be decisive in some swing states if the race remains very close," said Drew Altman, president and chief executive officer of the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington, D.C., which studies Americans' views on health matters.

"Anything that adds to their anxiety about health could potentially have some impact at the margin in a very close race," added Altman, who holds a doctorate in political science.

[CAcyclist]

2. I Know What the Bushies Don't Want You To Find Out

The FDA hasn't inspected this plant since 1999.

In fact, inspections of all plants have been cut way back since 2001 and who knows what else is out there.

The Bush admin. is covering up this fact by having the FDA and CDC people lie and say there were problems in 2003.They don't want people to find out that our public health protection agency is being hobbled by this administration.

Doesn't it sound weird when they say this goes back to Clinton - well, it does, in a way, except that in the Clinton years, the FDA *was* inspecting and in the Bush years, the FDA suddenly dropped the ball.


Ok, I've been doing research and I'm not finished but I have gotten to the point that I am pretty confident.

It is my charge that the Bush Administration starved the FDA of sufficient funds from 2001-now to properly carry out their duties of inspecting physical plants like this lab and ensuring public safety.Secondly, the Bush administration allows too much industry input into public policy, thus allowing mergers like Powderject and Chiron when it should have known that this would cause too much risk.

It was *NOT*, repeat *NOT* 2003 that the FDA found problems in the Speke,, Liverpool factory - it was way, way back in 1999 and it is my charge that that plant hasn't been inspected until this October.

Some recent artcles repeating this:http://www.medilexicon.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=14769&language=spanishAn FDA spokesperson, Karen Midhun stated that in 2003 the FDA had discovered some contaminated batches of flu vaccine which had been reprocessed. The licence does not allow reprocessing. She said Chiron told them it was sorting the
problem out. In August 2004 Chiron told the FDA another batch was contaminated, Midhun said.


http://www.healthfinder.gov/news/newsstory.asp?docID=521733

On Monday, however, USA Today reported that U.S. health regulators had identified problems at the British plant more than a year ago, in June 2003.


I can't prove the above allegation, except to say that the complete absence of ANY negative articles or news on the internet until you go back to 1999 is highly suspicious.If these 2003 problems occurred, it would have been reported in 2003 and the FDA would have issued a warning letter in 2003 and they didn't and it wasn't.

My evidence:

No negative news here or overseas in the internet anywhere for 2003 even though as a public company, Chiron would be required to publish negative news.

The FDA has a complete list of all warning letters on its Freedom of Information Act webpage
http://www.fda.gov/foi/warning.htm

You also need to know how this lab has changed names.
Sometime previous to 1999, the lab was run by GlaxoWellcome and by 1999, it was owned by Medeva.

In 1999,Medeva suffered a recall of its polio vaccines due to possibke exposure to BSE(mad cow diease) and subsequently, the FDA inspected the plant and issued the following Warning Letter:

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/wlcfm/company_archive.cfm?FL=M 10/21/99 Medeva

As an aside, Glaxo also got another Warning Letter for a different plant of theirs in Italy for similar problems:

http://www.fda.gov/foi/warning_letters/m4208n.pdf
Glaxo Wellcome, S.p.A.

Then to go back to the name changing - Medeva sold the plant to Celltech which sold it to Powderject and Chiron bought Powderject in June 2003.

However, 2001,2002, 2003, and 2004 so far do not show *any* warning letters and while I have not downloaded all pdf files to check, it looks like their overseas budget has been cut drastically. Their total number of warning letters are down dramatically too from the years 1999 and 2000 and I think that points to decreased investigations, not improved safety/cleanliness.

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/wlcfm/company.cfm?FL=C Chiron not listed, Celtech unrelated item

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/wlcfm/company_archive.cfm?FL=C Chiron unrelated item, Celltech unrelated item

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/wlcfm/company.cfm?FL=P Powderject not listed

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/wlcfm/company_archive.cfm?FL=P Powderject not listed

My contention is that if the FDA is consistent, they would have issued a warning letter last year to Chiron if there were problems last year. I am not saying there weren't problems - I am saying I don't believe the FDA did any inspections. I think they are afraid to admit that this plant, with such serious problems in 1999 was not further inspected until just now and that it took the British to shut it down.

Other links:
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,386177,00.html

Martin Bright and Antony Barnett
Sunday October 22, 2000
http://www.express.co.uk/00/10/21/news/n0100splash.shtml
http://stg.syndnet.thomsonfn.com/InvestorRelations/PubNewsStory.aspx?partner=5425&storyId=87791
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A18190-2002Apr19¬Found=true
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20041017/news_1n17flu.html

[high density]

3. Well that's interesting

Because there's no way Kerry is involved with this shortage. Of course the * camp is attempting to spin it so that trial lawyers have caused manufacturers to stop making it because of the liability aspect, but that's not going to fly.

[CAcyclist]

4. Vaccine Injury Compensation Program

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
NATIONAL IMMUNIZATION PROGRAM
RECORD OF THE MEETING OF THE
ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON IMMUNIZATION PRACTICES
June 23-24, 2004

Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. Dr. Evans reported the VICP’s status, now in its fifteenth year of operation. To date, 2004 vaccine compensation claims total 787, versus 2589 at this time in 2003. Most (90%) of the latter were due to the autism/thimerosal omnibus
proceedings. A quarter of the non-omnibus hearing claims involve DTaP; another 25%, MMR;HBV involves 20%. Of the 4000 vaccines administered before 1988, all but one claim have been adjudicated. The VICP awards total $1.4 billion to date, of which ~$900 million went to pre-
1988 claims. More than $575 million paid post-88 claims. The Trust Fund has $2 billion.

In VICP-relevant legislation, a bill to add hepatitis A and influenza vaccines to the list of taxable vaccines has passed the House and Senate. <snip>

I understand that this bill is awaiting Bush's signature

[KharmaTrain]

5. Is Robertson Mad At Bunnypants?

I still can't understand how Robertson, no matter how stupid and feeble he is, would come out with a bombshell like the one of Bunnypants being so cavaliere about Iraq casualties.

Now we might not think this is a big thing, but it's been resonating around Christian radio all day and the tone has been to put Robertson in the good light here.

Now CBN reports about the flu shots being a big issue? Of course it is, but it's not the issue the evil empire wants out there right now...especially in Christian media.

I wonder if Pat's pissed the Bunnypants likes Jerry or Jim Jones or James Dobson more, and this just doesn't go well in the hair-sprayed world of tele-evangelism.

Anyone else seeing this?