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November 19, 2009 Volume 5, Number 45 | ||
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In This
Issue .
Veteran's Day
.
Swine Flu
Vaccine .
A Little Bit
of Humor. E-Mail
cynthia.davis@house.mo.gov Find me
on
Committees Special
Committee on Children and Families Chair Chair Special Committee on State
Parks and Waterways Official Homepage for Official Government Homepage for your
Look up Missouri House Bills - View Entire Text, Summary, and Last Action Look up Consumer Complaints & Fraudulent Activity, No-Call List Federal
Links Congressman Blaine
Luetkemeyer |
The
Swine Flu: Getting Past the Hype
I like
my school district. Here I am standing in front of their sign that
announces the anticipated vaccination event was cancelled. The
school district was going to host a flu shot clinic, but could not get the
vaccines. Some of my constituents are asking me questions about the
process. Beyond this being an interesting study of supply and
demand, here are my thoughts: I think I'm one of those who are immune to the virus. That's good because I shake a lot of hands. I never really worried about getting either the flu or the vaccine, although I realize many of my constituents are very concerned. People have been getting sick since sin entered the world. Germs spread far and fast. This one was remarkable because of media attention received. Usually we don't know from where a virus originated, and complications are simply treated with antibiotics. Here are
some facts to consider: 1.)
Don't
worry about what you call it. We all know that it is referred to as
both "The Swine Flu" and "H1N1". I am not at all concerned that the
readers of my report go out and shoot their hogs or will think they can
get the swine flu from eating pork. 2.)
While it
is true that this flu is highly contagious, it is not virulent.
Experts are saying it is actually milder than the regular seasonal
flu. You can scare a lot of people with statistics, but the reality
is that people die in our country every day from many different causes, so
those numbers are deceiving. It would be more helpful if the
statistics were broken down by the complications from which they die
rather than just calling it the flu. The majority of those who
have died had underlying high-risk medical conditions before they got the
flu. Link here to read the Wall Street article, H1N1
Impact.
3.)
It is
not the job of the government or the schools to provide vaccines.
Schools are educational institutions, not health institutions. The
ones that have offered vaccinations were trying to be helpful, but
ultimately this decision should be worked out between you and your
doctor. The 4.)
A lesson
in reverse psychology: Since they acted like there would not be
enough vaccines, there was more demand than usual. If the government
had implemented a mandatory vaccination program where everybody would be
forced to get it, fewer may have wanted one. I will not join those
who are bashing our government or calling them inept because of the
availability impediments. The drug companies are doing all they can
to make these vaccines. Here are two articles that discuss reasons
for the shortage. One discusses the US Department of Health
the other
the vaccine
shortage. 5.)
If you get
the flu, it will most likely give you more immunity when a similar virus
comes around again. The
reason I didn't get the flu while everyone around me was getting it
probably was because I had the version that went around in the 70's.
I am going to pass on my vaccination so that someone elderly or with a
weaker immune system can have mine. 6.)
Plenty
of the vaccine is on its way, although many states are reporting to be
past the peak of people coming down with this flu. The State of
This
website contains an audio interview with pediatrician Dr. Larry Palevsky
discussing the wisdom in choosing to be
vaccinated. Your
thoughts are important to me, so please let me know what you think about flu
vaccinations. You can send me your opinion by clicking
here: Cynthia Davis A Little
Bit of Humor . . .
A
pediatric nurse had the difficult assignment of giving immunization shots
to children. One day she entered the examining room to give Lizzie her
shot.
"NO! NO!
NO!" Lizzie screamed. "Lizzie,"
her mother scolded. "That's not polite
behavior." At that,
the girl yelled even louder, "NO, THANK YOU! NO, THANK YOU! NO, THANK
YOU!"
This
Capitol Report is a weekly column by Representative Cynthia
Davis, from District 19,
covering events in the Missouri Legislature and district-wide
issues. ?
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