NEWS DAY | Minnesota Department of Health flu hotline - FAIL
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The Star Tribune cheerfully headlined “Finally, H1N1 vaccine a click away” and continued:
Looking for an H1N1 shot?
Now you can find one by entering your ZIP code on a state public health website.
Only problem: it’s not true. The www.mdhflu.com website lists NO H1N1 vaccine clinics within 30 miles of Minneapolis or St. Paul. None. Not a single one.
So here’s the progress on finding H1N1 vaccines for people at risk: Two weeks ago, MDH was withholding all information about where you could get an H1N1 flu shot, theoretically because the public could not be trusted with that information. Now MDH says they will give the information to the public, but their website doesn’t have accurate or current information. Progress?
There are clinics offering H1N1 vaccine, but I’m not sure where all of them are. An intensive web search turned up the Hennepin County website listing a couple of December clinics. They’re suburban locations, but well within the 30-mile radius. Some college campuses are offering H1N1 vaccines to their students, though others are still waiting for the vaccine, according to MPR. And there are other clinics, but which ones and where they are remain a mystery.
Supplies of the vaccine are still scarce – news reports from various sources say that Minnesota has received about a million doses, but that about 2.7 million are needed to meet the demand for at risk groups.
The vaccine is still limited to people at risk. That group now includes anyone between six months and 24 years of age, people who live with or care for children under six months of age, people older than 25 who have chronic health conditions, and health care providers.
MPR reports that some clinics have surplus H1N1 vaccine and are vaccinating non-high-risk patients.
Minnesota Public Radio News has learned of at least five cases where H1N1 vaccine was offered to patients, even though the individuals did not fall into any of the high-risk categories for priority vaccination. Four of the cases occurred at two different clinics southeastern Minnesota and one case was in St. Paul.
MPR didn’t name the clinics, but it quoted MDH spokesperson Kris Ehresman:
So far, there’s only enough vaccine for less than half of Minnesota’s estimated 2.7 million residents who are in high-risk categories. Ehresmann said she’s heard from many metro-area counties where demand for vaccine is still very high and the supply is very short.
She said any clinic that has excess vaccine should share its doses with other clinics.
News with attitude, mostly from MN but with occasional forays abroad. News Day summarizes, links to, and comments on reports from news media around the world, with particular attention to Minnesota news.
Mary Tuck is the editor of the TC Daily Planet.
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Comments
Us too...here in Maine
Hello Daily Planet and people of the Twin Cities,
We're a small state but we've gotten woefully inadequate supplies too and there have been no public H1N1 vaccines anywhere in our biggest metropolitan area (the Greater Portland area, with 250,000 - 500,000 people). Some of our public schools have received some of the vaccine and have held small clinics for H1N1 but other than that, nothing.
My hopes that vaccine soon starts rolling in for you all, as well as us.
Minnesota.. no surprise
Nothing is ever done correctly or efficiently in this horrible, terribly run state. I cannot wait to find a job elsewhere and NEVER return to this disaster of a state. From poor contruction planning, to even poorer transportation planning, this place is a failure on almost every level. I wouldn't attempt to utilize a state website unless I was being forced to. FAIL MN. Don't EVER move here.
Why the fuss?
Why is the shortage of vaccine for a flu that is 1200% less fatal than asprin such a big deal?
Deaths from H1N1 = 593 (US) .
Deaths yearly from asprin = 7,600 (US).
Your numbers are just plain wrong
The total for ALL accidental poisoning is far lower than the number you claim for aspirin - an average of 4,883 per year according to the Home Safety Council. While I can't find current numbers for aspirin poisoning, that's probably because the numbers are too low to be widely reported - a few dozen per year.
Similarly, your numbers on H1N1 deaths seem to be pretty far off the mark. According to the Centers for Disease Control:
You could still argue that H1N1 is over-hyped or over-emphasized -- for example, that malaria or famine or dysentery or asthma is a more significant health problem. But the first thing to do in making a credible argument is to get your facdts straight.
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