US Faces H1N1 Flu Vaccine Shortage

Now this was unheard of...
Grown up in India, I had gone through many shortages... shortage of milk, shortage of water, shortage of food, shortage of Petrol (Gas), shortage of Gas (Cooking)...

My more than 10 years in US, i had yet to heard that we are out or something... but there is always first time... isn't it? We are out of Flu Vaccine...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there is not enough H1N1 vaccine available for everyone in the United States. And schools and clinics around the U.S. are experiencing the results of the shortage.
In some cities, people wait for hours at mass vaccination clinics, just to be turned away when the supply is gone.

The man in charge of vaccine procurement at the Department of Health and Human Services says if there are early outbreaks in September and October, there could be increased demand for the shots.

As usual, true to any government, they are giving Excuses and Blames:

—The full 195 million the government has ordered is expected by December, the long-set date for final delivery.

—"We're trying to bring on more manufacturing" for the packaging step that has emerged as a logjam, said Dr. Robin Robinson, the Department of Health and Human Services official in charge of vaccine procurement. "Hopefully, there are ways to bring that number up."

—One manufacturer, France-based Sanofi-Pasteur, took longer than expected to finish brewing the regular winter flu vaccine, delaying the swine flu work, Robinson said. "We knew there were problems," but only recently the extent, he said.

—Another supplier, Australia's CSL, recently notified the U.S. that its shipments will arrive later than promised because it first must provide batches to its home country, where the flu season is winding down. Although the U.S. signed a contract with CSL first, "there was always the possibility they could do that," Robinson said. "Our laws can do the same thing. We don't, but we could."

—And it took health authorities longer than anticipated to develop the tests, called reagents, required to ensure doses are at the proper strength before they are cleared for use.

"The fact that we have fewer doses I think actually will focus attention," Schaffner said. "it will mean that we all will have to be much more specific about whom we will ask to show up."

So what is the Government Solution: - what else - Rationing

Since there is a shortage of H1N1 vaccine, the supply will not cover the entire population. Accordingly, the government is planing to ration the swine flu vaccine. As flu season begins, the only people that will be able to be inoculated are pregnant women, people who work in public health, and children that are under the age of four.

The original plan was to vaccinate every elementary age student, with their parent's approval. But nurse coordinator Robin Wallin at Alexandria public schools outside of Washington now has to tell parents only children in pre-kindergarten through first grade can receive the H1N1 vaccine.

My view: If government can not handle one small health care related task of provide vaccine efficiently, how can one trust them to provide complete health care... can you? I am sorry, but O can't.