Obama declares swine flu a national emergency

[jedi]

The shroud of the Dark Side has fallen. Begun, this federal emergency powers declaration has.

Last year the media did a wonderful job of "teaching" and warning of the terror of the swine flu so that this year when I6BO declares a federal emergency the people buy it.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama declared the swine flu outbreak a national emergency and empowered his health secretary to suspend federal requirements and speed treatment for thousands of infected people.
The declaration that Obama signed late Friday authorized Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to bypass federal rules so health officials can respond more quickly to the outbreak, which has killed more than 1,000 people in the United States.
The goal is to remove bureaucratic roadblocks and make it easier for sick people to seek treatment and medical providers to provide it immediately. That could mean fewer hurdles involving Medicare, Medicaid or health privacy regulations.
"As a nation, we have prepared at all levels of government, and as individuals and communities, taking unprecedented steps to counter the emerging pandemic," Obama wrote in the declaration, which the White House announced Saturday.
He said the pandemic keeps evolving, the rates of illness are rising rapidly in many areas and there's a potential "to overburden health care resources."
Because of vaccine production delays, the government has backed off initial, optimistic estimates that as many as 120 million doses would be available by mid-October. As of Wednesday, only 11 million doses had been shipped to health departments, doctor's offices and other providers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said.
The government now hopes to have about 50 million doses of swine flu vaccine out by mid-November and 150 million in December.
The flu virus has to be grown in chicken eggs, and the yield hasn't been as high as was initially hoped, officials explained.
Swine flu is more widespread now than it's ever been. Health authorities say almost 100 children have died from the flu, known as H1N1, and 46 states now have widespread flu activity.
Worldwide, more than 5,000 people have reportedly died from swine flu since it emerged this year and developed into a global epidemic, the World Health Organization said Friday. Since most countries have stopped counting individual swine flu cases, the figure is considered an underestimate.

 

[SavageEagle]

Helps if you cite a source. Here's one sent to me on Facebook..
Obama Declares H1N1 Flu 'National Emergency' - Political News - FOXNews.com

Here's his crisis he needs to start throwing his weight around.

 

[MyGlockRocks19]

The national emergency started in 2006, and got worse in November of 2008.

 

[SavageEagle]

POLL!
Do You Think H1N1 Is a National Emergency? - FOXNews.com

 

[Spot Me 2]

.....and so it begins.

 

[jedi]

Sorry SE saw it on my Yahoo News Feed when I entered my email.

Here was the source of the quote (full article I put).
Obama declares swine flu a national emergency - Yahoo! News

BTW here is the voting results so far.

Yes, we should prepare for the outbreak to get much worse 8% (933 votes)
Yes, though the outlook isn't as dire as it sounds 6% (721 votes)
No, but I'm still concerned about the flu's spread 29% (3,301 votes)
No, the outbreak is little more than media hype 55% (6,203 votes)
I don't know 1% (152 votes)
Total Votes: 11,310

Looks like american's are not buying this cow dumpings too bad DC is no longer listening to it's PEOPLE.

 

[jedi]

Here's his crisis he needs to start throwing his weight around.

That is what I fear. It has begun...

 

[SavageEagle]

That is what I fear. It has begun...

Not a problem, I just figured you should put one before you got flamed for it. Always helps to have multiple sources or people will just call on it.

Also, it began with his first day in transition. It also began with the formation of the UN and the OAS. And with the Patriot Act. And the New Deal. This is not the beginning, but kick off for the second half.

 

[Prometheus]

Keep in mind that the first thing this does is give blanket immunity to all the vaccine companies from ANY and ALL lawsuits. Even from gross negligence!

Second, it means that thousands of pencil pushing .gov lackies are getting cart Blanche powers to do/order/take virtually anything they want.

 

[SavageEagle]

Is there a link anywhere to read what he signed?

 

[jeremy]

Here is the current results from the FoxNews Poll.


Thank you for voting!



Yes, we should prepare for the outbreak to get much worse 9% (1,111 votes)
Yes, though the outlook isn't as dire as it sounds 6% (817 votes)
No, but I'm still concerned about the flu's spread 29% (3,722 votes)
No, the outbreak is little more than media hype 55% (7,004 votes)
I don't know 1% (179 votes)
Total Votes: 12,833

View Comments

 

[djl02]

.

 

[Woodsman]

Who was that said, never a let an emergency go to waste? Here's another one.

I saw something this morning where the German chancellor and some other government types were getting a different vaccine than the one proposed for the common folk. The special one for the government was without mercury. I'm sure this will go over well.

 

[SavageEagle]

Its never important ,until it effects YOU.

It's always been important to me. Did you know that PA is voting on making the vaccine mandatory like MA did? I have a friend that lives out there and she wants to move. If the federal gov. is going to make it mandatory I wonder how many will revolt against it?

 

[Big John]

MY SIL is pregnant and I have been trying to convince them that the vaccination is a bad idea, told them to just go eat fish out of the Cal-Sag Canal if they wanted to poison their baby with mercury.

That got them thinking!!

Before I will allow anybody to inject anything into my body without my consent I will defend my freedom and yours with my life.

 

[Indecision]

This will be a foothold for Obamacare.

 

[rich8483]

what are the actual results of him declaring it an emergency? what laws will get bypassed? what new laws possible made? other than mandantory vac. with im totally not getting.

 

[mrjarrell]

MY SIL is pregnant and I have been trying to convince them that the vaccination is a bad idea, told them to just go eat fish out of the Cal-Sag Canal if they wanted to poison their baby with mercury.

That got them thinking!!

Before I will allow anybody to inject anything into my body without my consent I will defend my freedom and yours with my life.

You can request thimerasol free vaccine. Most doctors should have a supply on hand.

 

[rambone]

Scary times...

Obama declares swine flu a national emergency

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has declared 2009 H1N1swine flu a national emergency, the White House said on Saturday.

The declaration will make it easier for U.S. medical facilities to handle a surge in flu patients by allowing the waiver of some requirements of Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health insurance programs as needed, the White House said in a statement.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that swine flu has become widespread in 46 of the 50 U.S. states, a level comparable to the peak of ordinary flu seasons but far earlier and with more waves of infection expected.

Obama signed the statement on Friday night.

The White House statement said the declaration was intended to prepare the country in case of "a rapid increase in illness that may overburden health care resources." It was similar to disaster declarations issued before hurricanes hit coastal areas.

"It's important to note that this is a proactive measure -- not a response to a new development," an administration official said.

"H1N1 is moving rapidly, as expected. By the time regions or healthcare systems recognize they are becoming overburdened, they need to implement disaster plans quickly," he said.

Seasonal flu normally peaks sometime between late November and early March and kills about 36,000 Americans in an average year.

Swine flu has hit young adults and children the hardest, while seasonal flu normally is more dangerous for people over age 65.

H1N1, declared a public health emergency earlier in the year, has killed more than 1,000 people in the United States and put more than 20,000 in the hospital since it emerged earlier this year, the CDC said. But health officials are quick to note that the actual number of cases cannot be measured.

The new declaration clears the way for waivers of federal requirements that, for example, could prevent hospitals from establishing off-site, alternate care facilities that could help them deal with emergency department demands, the White House said.

The Health and Human Services Department is trying to deliver vaccines against H1N1 but says production is falling short of projections because companies are having trouble making them.

HHS has also moved to make available stockpiles of antiviral drugs oseltamivir, made by Roche AG under the brand name Tamiflu, and zanamivir, an inhaled drug made by GlaxoSmithKline under the brand name Relenza.

On Friday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for an experimental new drug called peramivir, made by Biocryst Pharmaceuticals Inc and licensed to Shionogi & Co Ltd.

The authorization allows the intravenous drug to be used in hospitalized patients who cannot take pills or inhale Relenza or when Tamiflu or Relenza do not seem to be helping.

 

[SavageEagle]

So where's this declaration that I can read for myself?