FLU shots....

[Spazmogen]

Is anyone getting a FLU shot this year?

What the cost where you live and what kind of wait do you have to get it?

Yes, I'm getting mine in the next 7 days.

Cost: free.

I've been reading about Americans coming up to Canada to get it for about $50 USD each. One guy flew in from Texas for it.

[dolphinius_rex]

Personally, I think flu shots a load of crap. I have no faith in them whatsoever, and have only gotten one on one occasion previously. Generally speaking, members of my family who get a flu shot, get the flu. I have never gotten the flu in the last 8 or so years, despite being among family members who did have the flu (usually with flu shot). And it wasn't that they got the flu within 2 weeks after getting the shot either, it's usually over a month.

Anyways, since my mother is rather sick as of late, with things that will not be getting better, since it put her mind at ease, I will be submitting myself to the shot this year, and have an appointment to get it Oct 28th. There are some things a person will only do for someone they care a great deal for, for me, this is one of them.

Cost to me? nothing. I could also get it free through work if I wanted, but I'm going through my Doctor.

[eliminator]

no shots for me !

[BoGMan1a]

With all those weird Asian Flu things that went on last year, I considered getting a shot. But then I figured that I was a fairly young (36), strong, healthy guy, and I would take my chances as I have for the last few years. There are a ton of people that really need the protection more than I do. NOT CONGRESS AND ALL THEIR AIDS :evil: though.

[Spazmogen]

I work in a small building with 22 others for 12 hour shifts.

Many are coughing already and have colds.

I had the Flu 5 or 6 years ago and I was not able to get out of bed for 2 days. I remember having 2 blankets on me and not being able to keep warm. I felt like death warmed over for about a week afterwards.

Now I have 2 kids under age 4 @ home and could not imagine being that sick AND looking after them at the same time...

[dodecahedron]

i've been taking flue shots, every year for the last 10 years or so, don't remember exactly how many. the family doctor recommended it.
he also said that the longer you take the shots, the more effective they are.

didn't last year though, the wife would'nt let me 'cause she was pregnant.

i will this year if the kiddie doc says it's OK.

[bill]

didn't last year though, the wife would'nt let me 'cause she was pregnant.

i will this year if the kiddie doc says it's OK.

Why is that, are you certain to get a mild case of the flu?

[JamieW]

Spaz, I wouldn't call it "free."

If I recall, provinces have either a % of income or premium based on income for healthcare.

Then the income taxes approach 50% for the average canadian income.

Then there are 7% national sales taxes. Then the provincial taxes of around the same %. Combined for about a 15% sales tax.

I wouldn't call keeping roughly 40% of your income after taxes "free."

[dodecahedron]

Why is that, are you certain to get a mild case of the flu?

no, but you might.
and in any case my wife preferred to be extra-cautious.

[UALOneKPlus]

Nah, never had a flu shot yet. I'm very strong and healthy.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Seriously though, I think it's overblown. I've had flus before, but they were never serious enough to warrant seeking flu shots the year after.

[LoneWolf]

Normally, the county Health Dept. offers them inexpensively at work for us, seeing as educators cross paths with the germs of hundreds of students every day. I doubt that's going to happen this year, though.

If they don't offer them here, I won't get one. I usually do, but there's people out there who need the vaccination more than I do.

[LoneWolf]

i've been taking flue shots, every year for the last 10 years or so, don't remember exactly how many. the family doctor recommended it.
he also said that the longer you take the shots, the more effective they are.

didn't last year though, the wife would'nt let me 'cause she was pregnant.

i will this year if the kiddie doc says it's OK.

It's not as much that they're "more effective" it's that influenza mutates every year into a new strain. Last year's shot won't protect you against this year's strain, though it will have helped your body develop antibodies in case you come into contact with last year's strain at any time in your life.

I don't know why your wife would be worried...the flu vaccine doesn't contain any live virus, so while it may produce occasional flu-like symptoms in some(due to your body's response in developing antibodies) it's a myth that you can actually develop influenza from having had the shot.

[Justin42]

I've been getting the flu shot for about 10 years and it does really seem to help -- I work in a building that seems to spread stuff pretty easily so it's nice peace of mind if nothing else. I probably won't be getting one this year unless stocks suddenly free up, which they probably will (you know how these media-created frenzies tend to die down quickly).

It IS a myth you can get the flu from the shot, but your immune system does weaken (because it's fighting off the shot) so you CAN become more susceptible to picking OTHER stuff up (and since most people get flu shots during cold season, you need to be really careful, wash your hands a lot, blah blah). But it's not a "get a flu shot, get the flu" cause and effect sort of deal.

[liteonrules]

cost $25.00, waited 3 hours in line and then i was turned away for being too young. oh well, the sick and elderly need it more than i do,so it's all good
. i can't believe the united states does not have enough flu shots. whom to blame!!!! i guess i can't blame it totally on george bush but GEORGE BUSH or goverment not helping enough to get a solution.
I voted for Bush in 2000 when i was 18 but not this time.

[VEFF]

Short answer: no.

I am well under 65 and in good health.
Even if I could get one this year, as I usually do at my company's medical center, I wouldn't knowing that someone else who really needs one isn't getting one due to the shortage.
I would actually give my spot up for my mother who has various health issues.

[LoneWolf]

cost $25.00, waited 3 hours in line and then i was turned away for being too young. oh well, the sick and elderly need it more than i do,so it's all good
. i can't believe the united states does not have enough flu shots. whom to blame!!!! i guess i can't blame it totally on george bush but GEORGE BUSH or goverment not helping enough to get a solution.
I voted for Bush in 2000 when i was 18 but not this time.

Know what? Not being able to get more shots here makes for great political rhetoric --but it's false rhetoric. If anyone other than Bush were president, it wouldn't make a dime's worth of difference. Honestly, I'm tired of the belief that the government is responsible for everything, especially everything that goes wrong.

Long story short --a British company, world's largest maker of flu vaccinations, was decertified by the British gov't. The FDA could have still decided to take the existing shots anyway, but in the interest of public safety (I mean, which would you rather hear? "Public more susceptible to flu this year" or "Public health in jeopardy from flu shots" as a newspaper headline) decided to also not accept vaccinations from this company. It isn't possible to really stockpile flu vaccines; they have a fixed shelf life, AND there's a new strain of flu every year, for which a new vaccine must be developed. This means that the US couldn't just buy lots of shots last year and hold onto them for next, we have to order every year.

Making flu vaccine is a business, just like any other business. If McDonald's was suddenly found to be unsafe across the country due to mad cow disease beef and the government closed their doors, would you blame the government because you couldn't get a Big Mac or would you be happy that they prevented people getting sick?

[TheWizard]

*chants* Over-rated!

[jjones]

A healthy young individual probably doesn't need to get a flu shot unless they come in close and frequent contact with the sick, the young or the elderly.

I was lucky enough to get a flu shot early this year. Most people are not able to get a flu shot this eyar in the U.S. I am young and healthy but my work situation fits the above criteria. It's not really just protect myself, but to protect all the other people I can potentially infect if I got the flu.

[Spazmogen]

Spaz, I wouldn't call it "free."

If I recall, provinces have either a % of income or premium based on income for healthcare.

Then the income taxes approach 50% for the average canadian income.

Then there are 7% national sales taxes. Then the provincial taxes of around the same %. Combined for about a 15% sales tax.

I wouldn't call keeping roughly 40% of your income after taxes "free."

It's a relative term with no easy explanation...

I agree that Canadians are over taxed compared to Americans. But our government also had a $9 Billion surplus last year. America had a $400 Billion deficit.

Nothing can stop the tax grab. Fact is Canada is larger than the USA, but has a population about the size of California. In otherwords: not enough people to pay for the upkeep of the territory & services. You get used to 15% taxes added on at the cash register (it's not 15% in all Provinces).

As for health care, it was rated the #1 topic of interest during our last election. Fact is, I can get cancer and have years of treatments. When I walk out of the hospital, there is no bill sent to me. IE: free. The cost of care provided can far exceed the money contributed by the individual. In Ontario the % fee was hidden as a pay roll tax, now its out in the open again and applied across a more general base. A bigger tax grab as it were.

As for 40% income tax: I'm in that range, but after RRSP (aka IRA type investment) contributions, it dropped to 17% last year for me.

Canadians are idiots if they do not have an RRSP. It's the best tax shelter in North America. We have a LOT of idiots up here.

A 24 of beer in Ontario is about $30 (about $24 US)
A litre of gas is about 82 cents ($2.52 US/Gallon) it can jump/drop 10 cents a litre overnight with no outrage from the citizens at all.

Some things cost more up here, some less.

Taxes will never go seriously down.

Such is life.

[dolphinius_rex]

Hey Spaz,

Did you hear that BC's provincial tax just went from 7.5% to 7% so with GST added, we're at 14% again! ....now, if we can just catch up to Alberta! (they have 0% Provincial taxes, so a total of 7% taxes, for those who don't know)

[UALOneKPlus]

alright, I'm movin' to Canada!!!

Spaz - you got room in your house for guests?

[Spazmogen]

Hey Spaz,

Did you hear that BC's provincial tax just went from 7.5% to 7% so with GST added, we're at 14% again! ....now, if we can just catch up to Alberta! (they have 0% Provincial taxes, so a total of 7% taxes, for those who don't know)

No, I hadn't heard about BC dropping the PST downwards. It must be an election year (or an election promise that was kept )

I did hear about Klein & company in Alberta calling the election and being totally deficit free. Talk about a nice situation to be in. But they're far colder than BC & Ont. in January.

[Spazmogen]

OK.

Lets get back onto track:

Flu shots....good or bad or evil?

I actually got the Flu from my very 1st one about 6 years ago. They had a small problem with the dosage being a tad strong.

Dr. Spaz prescribed Dark Rum.

It may not have helped, but it didn't hurt either.

[dolphinius_rex]

Well, I got my flu shot yesterday as planned. My arm is still a little sore, but nothing that bad. I felt hot and dizzy a couple hours afterwards until the end of the day, and I've had pretty bad headaches on and off ever since yesterday afternoon. It's not the flu though.

[MonteLDS]

no flu shoot for me. no need to get it.
I wonder how many flu shoots were given out last year vs how many flu shoots were given this year...