About 22 million Americans have been sickened by swine flu since April, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of those, 2 million individuals are 65 and older. Also since April, about 3,900 Americans with swine flu have died -- 440 of those fatalities were seniors. A director at the CDC says she expects these numbers "unfortunately, to continue to rise."
According to a Wall Street Journal report, "the sharply higher numbers of illnesses and deaths are the result of the CDC trying to better quantify the new H1N1 flu's impact . and do not mean the disease has become more virulent."
Here is a quick look at how swine flu is affecting seniors. These numbers cover an approximately six-month period between April and October 2010:
- About 11.3% of swine flu-related deaths have occurred among individuals 65 and older. Approximately 3,900 Americans have died from swine flu and about 440 of those individuals were seniors.
- Of the 98,000 Americans who have been hospitalized with swine flu, about 9,000 are seniors - representing approximately 9.2% of all hospitalizations.
- Of the 22 million Americans who have been sickened with swine flu, about 2 million are seniors - representing approximately 9.1% of all swine flu-related illnesses.
As reported previously, seniors are not on the priority list for receiving the H1N1 vaccine because they are thought to have some immunity to the virus from exposure to similar viruses.
Source: ALFA Update, November 17, 2009
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