Although just four states are reporting widespread activity of the deadly H1N1 virus, an official from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strongly urged all Americans to receive the H1N1 vaccine, now that doses are widely available.
In a weekly news conference, Anne Schuchat, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said the agency has seen a drop in laboratory-confirmed hospitalizations and deaths from the disease, but that there is still more activity than is normal for this time of year. Delaware, Maine, New Jersey and Virginia are the four states that still have widespread activity of the disease, which emerged last April.
Schuchat said the CDC hopes to release updated figures on the numbers of hospitalizations and deaths from the H1N1 virus next week. Meanwhile, there are now 136 million doses of the H1N1 vaccine available and there are “ample supplies of the vaccine in most of the country,” according to Schuchat, who cautioned against complacency, which she called the “greatest enemy” right now.
“The H1N1 virus is still circulating, and we expect it to circulate for some time,” Schuchat said. “We need to stay vigilant. One piece of that is surveillance. We’re encouraging doctors to test patients with severe flu-like illness. We need to continue our efforts to prevent more cases,” she added. “Having as many people vaccinated is our best course of action, even though we can’t see the tea leaves of the future.”
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