health
States asked to reassess vaccine priorities
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Jan. 23, 2012
Jail inmates and prisoners have high rates of chronic and infectious diseases, but 55% of U.S. jails and prisons did not receive any influenza A(H1N1) vaccine during the 2009 pandemic period. That's the finding of a study in the Jan. 6 issue of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
During the H1N1 pandemic, states were in charge of allocating their available immunizations to areas where they thought the need for the vaccine was greatest, according to the CDC.
For the study, researchers examined the results of a national survey of health professionals who work in a representative sample of U.S. prisons and jails (link). The survey was distributed between July and November 2010.
The findings indicate that some states might need to re-examine their priorities in dispensing vaccines so they can better protect their populations, the study authors said.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/01/23/hlbf0123.htm.
