Immunization Newsbriefs (c) Copyright Information
Inc., Bethesda, MD. Brought to you by the National Network for Immunization
Information (NNii). Visit NNii's new website at
http://www.immunizationinfo.org.
According to the
World Health Organization (WHO), the A/Moscow strain of influenza could be more
deadly than severe acute respiratory syndrome. The deputy director of the WHO
Influenza Center in Melbourne, Alan Hampson, is warning that the strain could
kill more than 1,500 people during the upcoming flu season in Australia. The
A/Moscow strain of influenza has already hit other countries including the
Republic of Congo, which has seen 1.5 million cases and 2,000 deaths. Last
year, only 18 percent of Australians were vaccinated against influenza, and
health officials are urging people to get the shot, which includes protection
against the new strain, which was first identified in Russia in 1999.
DISCLAIMER: All
information, data, and material contained, presented, or provided here is for
general information purposes only and is not to be construed as reflecting the
knowledge or opinions of the publisher, and is not to be construed or intended
as providing medical or legal advice. The decision whether or not to vaccinate
is an important and complex issue and should be made by you, and you alone, in
consultation with your health care provider.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"