Obama Declares National H1N1 Swine Flu National “Emergency”

It’s now official and in a stage beyond just warnings: President Barack Obama has declared swine flu a national emergency:

President Barack Obama has signed a proclamation declaring swine flu a national emergency, the White House said Saturday.

“In keeping with the administration’s proactive approach to H1N1 Flu, President Obama last night signed a proclamation declaring 2009-H1N1 Influenza a national emergency,” it said in a statement. “The proclamation enhances the ability of our nation’s medical treatment facilities to handle a surge in H1N1 patients by allowing, as needed, the waiver of certain standard federal requirements on a case-by-case basis.”

Officials described the move as similar to a declaration ahead of a hurricane making landfall.

On Friday, federal health officials said more Americans have been vaccinated against seasonal flu this fall than ever before by this time of year.

Sixty million people have gotten the winter flu vaccine — probably because they’re paying more attention to flu warnings in general, thanks to swine flu. It’s an unprecedented number of seasonal flu shots for October; most usually aren’t given until later in the fall.

And this strain is particularly vicious:

The flu has infected millions of Americans and killed nearly 100 children in the U.S. The chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that over a thousand people have died as a result, with 46 states reporting widespread H1N1 activity.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve seen more than 1,000 deaths and 20,000 hospitalizations,” said Dr. Thomas Frieden, head of the CDC. “We expect it to occur in waves, but we can’t predict when those waves will happen.”

Sixty million Americans have been vaccinated against the seasonal flu this year, but an additional vaccine against H1N1 has been in short supply. About 120 million doses were expected to be made available by the middle of October, though only 11 million doses have been shipped to health departments for use.

Personal note: In my nonblogging incarnation, apart from writing I do often do programs in schools in my entertainer incarnation. October is the most germ-risk month each year (one year I got double pneumonia due to picking up ailments at schools and was hospitalized for 10 days while on the road). This year, it’s clear the schools in California are more at risk than ever — and here in San Diego swine flu is emerging bigtime at schools:

Outbreaks of swine flu have occurred in at least 29 schools in San Diego County over the past three weeks, it was reported Thursday.

Some of the affected schools have been hit with absentee rates of 20 percent of more in a particular class, grade or across the student body, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

County public health officials told the newspaper that the flu being caused by the H1N1 virus is likely circulating at all other local campuses but further testing is needed to confirm it.

“We know this virus is widespread throughout the community, and that includes our schools,” Deputy Public Health Officer Dr. Dean Sidelinger said.

The number of people hospitalized countywide with swine flu since the pandemic began earlier this year stands at 348 as of Wednesday afternoon.

But just as EVERYTHING in the United States these days MUST be politicized, swine flu has been no exception. Despite the advice of experts and doctors, some high profile pundits seemingly pooh-pooh the idea of getting a H1N1 flu shot. The Scripps Howard News Service has an interesting column on this. Here’s the beginning of it:

Forget about Bill Maher and Glenn Beck. Go get a flu shot — especially if you belong to a group most at risk for the disease. The vaccinations are safe, they are effective and they build a wall of protection for you and your community.

Maher, a left-wing comedian, wrote on Twitter recently: “If u get a swine flu shot ur an idiot.”

Beck, a conservative talk show host for Fox News, raised the possibility that the neurological disease Guillain-Barre Syndrome would break out. “How much do you trust your government?” Beck asked. “I think that’s the main question.”

Think about it for a moment. Glenn Beck? Bill Maher? Or the best scientists in the country?

We’ll go with the scientists. They believe the swine flu vaccine is safe. They believe Americans who are most at risk should receive it.

Indeed: Americans can now look at themselves their loved ones can ponder whether they think the shot is some evil government plot (does it contain a mind control drug that’ll make someone too centrist or too left wing or implant a GPS like tracking device in their arms?) or perhaps something that might stave off a unwanted recuperation at home, a costly hospital stay or perhaps a funeral for one of their children.

A difficult choice?