National flu emergency or big government looking to grow?

People`s health is a very important subject, which gets the ratings it deserves. There has been non-stop coverage of influenza in the mainstream news. But how much information has there been? Lucky we have the internet to give us opinions from patients, family members of patients, nurses, hospital staff management, doctors, surgeons, individuals, polls, test results/averages, journalists, corporations, non-profits, various government agencies and then make are own decisions. Because when your health is on the line, there is no such thing as too much information. On 10-24-09 the flu pandemic was declared a national emergency. Government now has more power to spend money and decide where that money is going. HIPAA standards have been stripped and reports will be given to the government about treatments to improve results, but raise concerns about privacy and misuse. Regulations have been loosened for manufactures, your local doctors and pharmacies. In efforts to make it easier and faster to get medications out. There have been reports of fake medication being prescribed to patients. Anyone can put a sign in a storefront window or place a listing in the phonebook. People need to be aware and do their research. If looking for options in the phonebook, I would recommend taking the extra step to check feedback at the website address listed on the cover. Or buy your medication online where you get the advantage of the pharmacy registration information being clearly listed. Along with phone numbers and e-mail addresses. Do an internet search before using any company. If they have a bad history, chances are there will be 50+ web sites warning you about them. Go to the better business bureau`s web site for more fraud protection. Use one of the online pill identification tools available at many health web sites, to prevent taking fake medications. Also great if you use one of the large national pharmacy chains, where machines fill prescriptions and occasionally make labeling mistakes. You can easily check with the FDA online for up to date safety reports. Here are a few of the many information rich links on the internet.

Allot of coverage has also been given to the H1N1 vaccine and vaccines in general. I am not here to encourage of discourage vaccine use. I would encourage everyone to get on the internet and do their own research before putting anything into their bodies. If you are looking for a place to get vaccinated here are some links.