How does Florida brace themselves for the marathon fight against swine flu?
Officials in Florida and Cuba have issued hurricane advisories ahead of the arrival of tropical storm Fay, which swept through parts of the Caribbean on the weekend. They say the storm could be near hurricane strength when it reaches central Cuba on Sunday night or early Monday and may turn into a hurricane when it reaches the Florida Keys late Monday. Fay brought gusts of wind of up to 110 km/h as its centre lashed Cuba’s southern tip earlier Sunday, said Jose Rubiera, the island’s chief meteorologist. Up to 200 millimetres of rainfall was expected, the Cuban Meteorological Institute said. At 8 p.m. ET, the storm’s centre was about 425 kilometres south-southeast of Key West, Fla., the U.S. National Weather Service said. The storm was moving west-northwest about 16 km/h. Maximum sustained winds were 85 km/h. Forecasters expected the storm to begin moving more to the northwest later Sunday night. Current models show the storm moving up the western coast of Florida, although forecasters
Florida already is planning for such vaccinations, said Dr. Ana M. Viamonte Ros, Florida surgeon general, as she emerged from the summit. ”We’re already meeting with local schools and day-care centers on how we would do this,” she said. “By mid-October we won’t have doses for everyone. The vaccines will have to be directed toward individuals at high risk.” Complicating the issue is the need to vaccinate against regular seasonal flu and the swine flu with different vaccines at the same time, Viamonte Ros said. Priorities would have to be different, because regular flu hits older people harder while swine flu is most widespread among the young. No final decision has been made on whether to vaccinate Americans, Sibelius said. That depends on studies with experimental batches that are to start in August. But if all goes well, the federal government will buy vaccine from manufacturers and share it free among the states. Confusion could arise as doctors, clinics and even pharmacies are i
