NY Times: Swine Flu Is Widespread in 46 States as Vaccines Lag

[marmar]

Swine Flu Is Widespread in 46 States as Vaccines Lag

By JACKIE CALMES and DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
Published: October 24, 2009


WASHINGTON — President Obama has declared the swine flu outbreak a national emergency, allowing hospitals and local governments to speedily set up alternate sites for treatment and triage procedures if needed to handle any surge of patients, the White House said on Saturday.

The declaration came as thousands of people lined up in cities across the country to get vaccinated, and as federal officials acknowledged that their ambitious vaccination program has gotten off to a slow start. Only 16 million doses of the vaccine were available now, and about 30 million were expected by the end of the month. Some states have requested 10 times the amount they have been allotted.

Flu activity — virtually all of it the swine flu — is now widespread in 46 states, a level that federal officials say equals the peak of a typical winter flu season. Millions of people in the United States have had swine flu, known as H1N1, either in the first wave in the spring or the current wave.

Although there has been no exact count, officials said the H1N1 virus has killed more than 1,000 Americans and hospitalized over 20,000. The emergency declaration, which Mr. Obama signed Friday night, has to do only with hospital treatment, not with the vaccine. Government officials emphasized that Mr. Obama’s declaration was largely a administrative move that did not signify any unanticipated worsening of the outbreak of the H1N1 flu nationwide. Nor, they said, does it have anything to do with the reports of vaccine shortages. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/25/us/politics/25flu.html?_r=1&hp

[Chemisse]

1. Seems prudent if it allows the establishment of alternate sites

For treatment.

But I bet it sends the Repubs into a tizzy, thinking there will be a flu vaccine mandate.

While most thinking people (ie democrats) carefully consider the question of H1N1 vaccination, these people seem to have woven it into some kind of doomsday democratic conspiracy.

[CoffeeCat]

2. 40,000 people die every year from the flu...

It would seem that 1,000 deaths so far, from Swine Flu--is on par with what a normal seasonal flu does.

Some people get the seasonal flu early and die--and I would imagine that 1,000 deaths at this point
is not unusual.

We still have a long way to go in the flu season, but the numbers right now don't seem that alarming.

[shraby]

3. He might better be pre-emptive in declaring an emergency

and then hospitals, etc can take steps that might be needed at any time from here on out. Better to be prepared than caught with nothing planned for. The flu can get really dangerous really fast. I'd rather have the government have everything ready now and not be Katrina'd.

[kestrel91316]

4. Big difference with this flu: significant numbers of these dead are

perfectly healthy children, young adults, and pregnant women. Normally it's the elderly who get hit hardest.

[Horse with no Name]

5. The reason this is alarming is because illnesses trend

there is "flu season" and "rsv season" and "rotavirus season", etc.
They tend to cycle with the weather and thankfully, RSV and rotavirus have been impacted dramatically by vaccines, but RSV tends to still break through. I have heard from folks "in the know" that with this particular flu season, RSV is going to be particularly bad too. I remember one of our last early-late RSV seasons...there was not ONE pediatric ICU bed to be had in Texas. Not one. We had to sit on critically ill kids until we could arrange air ambulances for out-of-state transfers. Talk about tough on the families! I didn't ever want to see that again, but I am hearing hoofbeats that we might see it again this year.
Flu season started very early, which means that we can expect a heavier than normal season. We are seeing in September-October what we normally see in November-December so that means that exponentially, the number of deaths could be staggering when we reach the height of the season.

[uppityperson]

6. Here is another differnce. It is only Oct 24. Try this timeline graph...

http://www.google.org/flutrends/
click on the country, can click on to a particular state or province. Notice this yr's line, compared to the last 6 yrs?