The story of 2009 H1N1 is shifting on a variety of fronts.
The latest CDC numbers showed that H1N1 was widespread in only 14 states last week. The vaccine supply continues to increase and is more widely available to everyone.
The pandemic has also proven less virulent than feared: it is infecting fewer people, making them less sick, and causing a lower mortality rate than expected.
But the CDC remains afraid of a possible third wave later this winter — and wary of potential viral mutations, antiviral resistance, and antivirals not working as well as hoped. Also, as CDC head Thomas Frieden pointed out, children are catching H1N1 in numbers greater than normal for seasonal flu; and so the H1N1 death rate for children has been higher than the normal seasonal-flu rate. Finally: many more people will still fall sick with swine flu, even if it’s permanently on the wane for the season. As a result, the CDC continues to promote the H1N1 vaccine. It recently released preliminary research results confirming the vaccine’s safety — and HHS announced a new PSA campaign promoting the vaccine. (Find the embeddable PSAs here.)
We hope to offer posts soon from several flu reporters thinking hard about the arc of the story — and about how to adapt reporting accordingly.
[Update 14 December 2009: Here's one example of the new HHS "get the vaccine" PSAs. This one is aimed at young adults.]
[HHS]
