Sally Furniss
Well-known member
A lurker emailed this question
I was reading a forum thread, Indiana Vaccine Supply Status, and had a question I'd like to ask, one that I haven't seen answered anywhere else:
Since there is a limited supply of H1N1, and the CDC seems to think 98% of current flu cases in Indiana are H1N1, would it be possible or even logical to test people/children who have already had the flu this season, which in NE Indiana seems to be a huge number, to see if they've already had this strain? I know this may double the workload for health departments, but for families like mine, where my wife works at a High School and had a serious flu three weeks ago, and my oldest child followed right after, it could limit the number of vaccinations we'd require.
I expect the test could be more time-intensive than giving the spray or shot, and perhaps more expensive, yet it would give the health departments something to do while waiting for the next batch, it'd provide some relief for families who cannot get the shots, and perhaps remove many people from the throngs waiting in line.
I have done a little online research, and there appears to be an unresolved discussion that
1) The CDC would be overwhelmed, perhaps, with so many tests;
2) The test *could* be brought way down in cost, if mass-produced (and would probably be more easily mass-produced than the vaccine), and
3) there are many people who would prefer the test, so as to prevent what they see as the unnecessary risks of a vaccination.
I was reading a forum thread, Indiana Vaccine Supply Status, and had a question I'd like to ask, one that I haven't seen answered anywhere else:
Since there is a limited supply of H1N1, and the CDC seems to think 98% of current flu cases in Indiana are H1N1, would it be possible or even logical to test people/children who have already had the flu this season, which in NE Indiana seems to be a huge number, to see if they've already had this strain? I know this may double the workload for health departments, but for families like mine, where my wife works at a High School and had a serious flu three weeks ago, and my oldest child followed right after, it could limit the number of vaccinations we'd require.
I expect the test could be more time-intensive than giving the spray or shot, and perhaps more expensive, yet it would give the health departments something to do while waiting for the next batch, it'd provide some relief for families who cannot get the shots, and perhaps remove many people from the throngs waiting in line.
I have done a little online research, and there appears to be an unresolved discussion that
1) The CDC would be overwhelmed, perhaps, with so many tests;
2) The test *could* be brought way down in cost, if mass-produced (and would probably be more easily mass-produced than the vaccine), and
3) there are many people who would prefer the test, so as to prevent what they see as the unnecessary risks of a vaccination.
