Are Influenza Vaccine Failures One Reason for Declining Flu Shot Uptake?
The rates of adults and children in the United States receiving influenza vaccinations have been steadily declining in recent years, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During the 2019-2020 “flu season,” 63.7 percent of American children between six months to 17 years of age received flu shots, compared to 55.4 […]
Mask Mandates Return to California With Fines and Prison for Violations
Mask mandates have been reinstated in California’s San Francisco Bay area and, depending upon the county, will include health care workers in medical settings, patients and visitors with fines and prison time for violations. Beginning on Nov. 1, 2024 and through the spring of next year, masks will be required in health care settings, including […]
FDA Licenses First At-Home Administered Influenza Vaccine
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has licensed the first of its kind live attenuated nasal spray influenza vaccine that can be administered at home. Adults up to the age 49 will be eligible to self-administer the FluMist Home vaccine or give it to their children two to 17 years old as long as […]
Top Killers in America
A study published in 2016 in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) identified “medical error” as the third leading cause of death in the United States. Study authors reported that medical errors are responsible for the deaths of about 251,000 Americans each year—up from the nearly 100,000 Americans estimated by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in […]
Trust in U.S. Doctors and Hospitals Has Declined Since COVID Pandemic
A 2024 survey study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network Open found that Americans trust in medical doctors and hospitals declined significantly after the COVID-19 pandemic.1 The 2020 pandemic signified a turning point in the public’s trust in the medical profession that was previously deemed to be a trustworthy profession. […]
Influenza Vaccines Only 42 Percent Effective in Adults This Year
The influenza vaccines currently being administered in the United States are estimated by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to be 42 percent effective in adults. This is an interim estimate for the 2023-2024 “flu season” published in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) on Feb. 29, 2024.1 2 3 […]