Here is a guest blog post by Edward D., who shares his concern & frustration over the H1N1 availability for babies and toddlers…
Shouldn’t the swine flu shot be made MORE AVAILABLE for babies and toddlers first? After all aren’t they the people who need it most?
On Thursday, Jan 21, the point was made on CBS’ The Doctors TV Show, that the H1N1 virus prevention shot is widely available. A CVS pharmacist was on hand making this announcement – great news! The show made the point that the shot is available at CVS (which it might be)…but I have a 24 hour CVS down the block, and the last time I went there, I didn’t see any reference to the shot being available. I did see a reference to the shot being given at Walgreens, which is also in close proximity to my apartment. I waited 1/2 an hour, and got the shot for myself…but, what about my son Zachy! For the record – I am a stay at home dad so I was able to get it during the day (unlike many of the working folks), but still had to wait 1/2 an hour.
Anyway, back to my point. Yes, the H1N1 shot is available at Walgreens and CVS, but it’s not available for infants, babies and toddlers. Recently, I went to my son’s pediatric doctor for his second flu shot. I asked the doctor about the availability of the Swine flu shot for him as well. She said that “yes, the shot is available for some people, but it’s not available for the people who need it most, babies – whose immune systems aren’t well developed yet, and are very susceptible to getting illnesses and viruses.”
Shouldn’t the swine flu shot be made MORE AVAILABLE for babies and toddlers first? After all, aren’t they the people who need it most?
The shot for babies and toddlers is not the same one adults get, and the manufacturing seems to be more convoluted. The adult one is easier to produce in quantity.
Plus, at this point, the flu ship has almost completely sailed. It will be 4-6 weeks before the kid one reaches efficacy, and by then, the season is over.