Monday, August 31, 2009

SWINE FLU WARNING FOR SENIORS

Every day I read five Israeli newspaper ".coms" because, as most of you know, I am truly concerned about the Jewish state’s long-term survival.

What I have learned in the last few weeks is quite alarming, but has nothing to do with Israel’s survival. It has to do with the swine flu.

Our health experts have told us over and over that it is the young who need to be vaccinated against the swine flu because they are the ones most likely to die from this disease. Only when there is a sufficient supply of vaccine for everyone that is not a senior citizen, can us older folks get vaccinated, and that includes those of us with diabetes, asthma, and other debilitating conditions.

Well guess what? There have been quite a few swine flu deaths in Israel, an alarming number for a tiny nation. And these deaths have been occurring mostly among Israelis in their 50s and older.

So let that be a warning to all seniors. Just because the deaths for swine flu in this country have been largely among younger people, the Israeli experience tells us that our government’s policy of limiting vaccinations to the younger population may constitute a death sentence for many seniors when the expected flu epidemic hits us later this fall.

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