The President has declared the swine flu epidemic to be a national emergency in order to allow hospitals to prevent themselves from being overwhelmed with swine flu patients and being able to set up triage units in order to address this form of influenza.
I don't want people to take the swine flu lightly, and pretend it doesn't exist when virtually of the flu out there is of the swine flu variety. Please take your children and your pregnant wives to get the vaccine for the swine flu when the vaccine becomes available in your area. You can check out www.flu.gov to see when the swine flu vaccine becomes available in your area.
It's why I had to take antibiotics along with my husband when we became affected with the swine flu three weeks ago in order to prevent respiratory infections from happening. My husband and I are a part of the populations at great risk from the swine flu--young people in their late adolescence and twenties, pregnant women, toddlers, and elderly people.
There's more here from the New York Times below:
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 an administrative move that did not signify any unanticipated worsening of the outbreak of the H1N1 flu nationwide. Nor, they said, did it have anything to do with the reports of vaccine shortages.
And here in Texas, the swine flu is hitting us hard with over 700 Texans sent to the hospital as a result.
Also, when the seasonal flu vaccine becomes available, please take the vaccine because the swine flu vaccine itself will likely not become available on a widespread basis until the end of November. You can also check your state health department's website for the latest locations on where to take the swine flu vaccination, and the seasonal flu vaccination as well. The Texas state health department's website has a location of pharmacies and other places that have stocked up on Tamiflu and Relenza for those currently experiencing the swine flu.
Don't believe the right-wing lies about the swine flu vaccine being dangerous, or that it's somehow a government conspiracy. Don't put your family's life at risk because of what you think about vaccines. Due to the right-wing lies, children have died as a result because their parents didn't want to risk vaccinating their children for the swine flu. If you've already had the swine flu, please still take the vaccine if you can to prevent exposure to a secondary bout of the swine flu or to mitigate the effects of it if it's mutated in coming out the second time. Don't think you're safe just because you had the swine flu and made it through.
With that said, here's a fun video of public option supporters crashing a AHIP meeting.