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U.S. Sen. Harkin: Common sense on the H1N1 virus
5/6/2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 6, 2009

Contact: Harkin Press Department

(202) 224-3254

Common Sense on the H1N1 Virus By Senator Tom Harkin

In the past couple of weeks there has been a lot of concern about the recent outbreak of H1N1 virus. With all of the concern, there has also been a lot of misinformation that has come out regarding it. Below are some common questions about H1N1.

Q-What is the H1N1 virus and how can I help slow its spread?

A- The H1N1 virus is a type of influenza and its symptoms are very similar to the seasonal flu. They include: fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue, dizziness and diarrhea. What makes the H1N1 outbreak different is that we have not seen this strain before. H1N1 is a new form of the flu that includes genetic material from human, bird, and pig viruses. Though the number of worldwide cases is still very small, some experts are already calling this a flu pandemic because people have little or no immunity to the virus, is capable of human-to-human transmission, and there is no vaccine.

The best thing to do to help slow the spread of the H1N1 virus is wash your hands often, cover your mouth when you sneeze and ask others around you to do the same. If you do not feel well, you should not go to school or work. Just as with the seasonal flu, keep the kids home and check with your health care provider.

Q- What is the government doing to address this outbreak?

A- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have been able to prepare for the H1N1 outbreak by stockpiling antivirals, improving surveillance and lab capacity, strengthening local and state public health agencies and investing in national vaccine research and development. So far, Iowa has received 109,520 courses of an antiviral and over 446,405 units of personal protective equipment for public health officials as a result. President Obama has asked for $1.5 billion to combat the H1N1 outbreak in a spending bill that is currently traveling through Congress. I intend to make that my mission as well as work with the Department of Health and Human Services to see if additional resources are needed to address the recent outbreak.

Apart from the H1N1 virus, some 36,000 Americans die each year from typical seasonal flu-related causes, according to the CDC. Seasonal flu is responsible for more than 31 million outpatient visits and more than 3 million days in the hospital. To help combat this, I recently announced legislation to prevent future flu outbreaks and provide free vaccines for all Americans. The Seasonal Influenza and Pandemic Preparation Act of 2009 would establish a nationwide voluntary influenza vaccination program under which any individual may receive an annual influenza vaccine, free of charge. It will also help to build up our vaccine-manufacturing capacity and prevent production capacity from becoming idle or underutilized. This would allow agencies to train workers to administer vaccines, bolster vaccine production agencies, and over time allow for a gradual build up of peoples immunity to future outbreaks.

Q- Is pork safe to eat?

A- Very simply, yes. Even though it has been dubbed the ‘swine flu’ in the press, the virus is not transmitted to people by pork, particularly when it is cooked properly. I look forward to enjoying Iowa pork as I always have.

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