H1N1: Does it freak you out?

By Jennifer J. Foster

Published: August 25, 2009

Let’s talk H1N1 for a second.

I’ve kept up with all the news about the virus, though mostly by default; I don’t consider myself an alarmist, but because of the massive coverage it’s getting, it’s hard to miss it on cable news and on the web.

I’ve talked to various people about it at varying points along the way. The general consensus in my circle seemed to be that while H1N1 would probably cause a slightly more intense or lengthy bout of flu as compared with the regular seasonal flu, it wasn’t anything to worry about—at least not in the apoplectic way some people are doing.

And then I read this article from CNN, which says in part:

The H1N1 flu virus could cause up to 90,000 U.S. deaths, mainly among children and young adults, if it resurges this fall as expected, according to a report released Monday by a presidential advisory panel.

The H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu virus, could infect between 30 percent and 50 percent of the American population during the fall and winter and lead to as many as 1.8 million U.S. hospital admissions, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology reported.

The report says 30,000 to 90,000 deaths are projected as part of a “plausible scenario” involving large outbreaks at schools, inadequate antiviral supplies and the virus peaking before vaccinations have time to be effective ...

An H1N1 resurgence may happen as early as September, at the beginning of the school year, and infections may peak in mid-October, according to the report. However, the H1N1 vaccine isn’t expected to be available until mid-October, and even then it will take several weeks for vaccinated individuals to develop immunity, the report says.

(For comparison, the seasonal flu is responsible for up to 40,000 U.S. deaths annually, according to CNN.)

So, the government wants you to get the vaccine (which is actually two shots) ... but it isn’t available yet, and by the time you get it, it may be too late for it to work.

Yikes.

What do you think about all this? Are you in an at-risk group? Are you concerned about H1N1? Are you going to get the vaccine? Let me know in the polls below and in the sidebar.