Blog by Sumana Harihareswara, Changeset founder
Moo?
Hi, reader. I wrote this in 2003 and it's now more than five years old. So it may be very out of date; the world, and I, have changed a lot since I wrote it! I'm keeping this up for historical archive purposes, but the me of today may 100% disagree with what I said then. I rarely edit posts after publishing them, but if I do, I usually leave a note in italics to mark the edit and the reason. If this post is particularly offensive or breaches someone's privacy, please contact me.
I got a flu shot this morning to do my bit for herd immunity. After I heard about the unusually bad flu season authorities promise, I made up my mind to make sure people would not catch it from me.
Good thing I got on the ball -- the country is running out of the vaccine. I didn't know, but I should have gotten FluMist. And if you come in contact with high-risk people often, think about it:
Another alternative is the FluMist, the more expensive inhaled version of the vaccine. Its maker, MedImmune Vaccines, made between 4 million and 5 million doses this year. Spokeswoman Jamie Lacey said that as of Nov. 18, the company had sold 400,000 doses, and "there is still a wide supply available."The nasal spray is recommended only for healthy people ages 5-49, and disease doctors are urging it as an option to save the traditional vaccine for more at-risk people.
"If you're healthy, you have two options: Please take the option that the other folks can't have," said Dr. William Schaffner of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.
