Our Complacency About the Flu Is Killing Us

Everyone’s talking—and rightly so—about this year’s flu season, which is on its way to becoming the worst in 15 years. The news is full of stories about hospitals resorting to tents to accommodate the influx of patients and parents dealing with school closings in nearly every state. We count and mourn the dead. As a family doctor, my heart is with those patients and their families. As a global health professional with four decades of experience in combating epidemics, my mind is on the one critical thing we aren’t talking about at all as we suffer in this flu season: complacency. Put plainly, our collective flu complacency is what is killing us. Our usual response to annual flu is not enough to combat the risks we face this week, let alone prepare us for the even deadlier pandemic flu most experts agree we’ll face in the future. Yes, we have an annual vaccine, and everyone eligible should get one without question. The reality, however, is that we remain stuck at immunization rates under 50%. And the flu vaccine we have is only 60% effective in the best years and 10% effective in the worst years. The current flu vaccine is better than nothing. We urgently need a much, much more effective flu vaccine. Yes, we know to close schools and places where the public gathers at close quarters indoors, like movie theaters. But we don’t always move soon enough or in a timely manner. Yes, we know that we should wash our hands, cover coughs and sn...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized deaths from flu 2018 flu epidemic flu epidemic 2018 flu peak flu season 2018 flu shot effectiveness healthytime how many people have died from the flu new flu symptoms public health why are people dying of the flu Source Type: news