Posted on 10/06/2009 4:44:36 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Half of Californians are not particularly worried about the swine flu, and most people trust that the state has the resources to keep them healthy if an influenza outbreak occurs, according to a recent Field Poll survey released Monday.
Despite repeated messages from federal and state officials that the swine flu - a form of influenza Type A, subtype H1N1 - could be a serious public health threat, 49 percent of survey respondents said they were not very concerned about the virus or not concerned at all.
Bay Area respondents were especially worry-free - 54 percent said they were not very concerned about the flu or not concerned at all.
"I think it's just a big, old massive media hype and it's kind of ridiculous," said Alicia Terra of San Jose, who participated in the survey.
The survey results are important to public health officials who are in the middle of planning large-scale immunization campaigns to stop spread of the swine flu. If people aren't concerned about the flu, they aren't as likely to get the vaccine, federal public health officials have said.
There were some marked differences in opinion in the state based on race and gender. Latino respondents were particularly worried about the swine flu - 62 percent said they were somewhat or very concerned. Among women, 57 percent were somewhat or very concerned compared with 46 percent of men who felt the same way.
Despite the overall relative lack of concern, 72 percent of survey respondents said they'd be somewhat or very likely to get the vaccine if doctors or public health officials recommended it.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
But but but the media is telling me to panic!
I apparently have one of the non-H1N1 strains that’s going around my area.
Otherwise --- GO RUTLES !!! :)
-- MM
Every one of my child’s friends have had it.....and have survived. It’s a MIRACLE!!!!! (sarcasm)
I work in a school where it has gone through like wildfire. It has been NBD.
We are supposed to PANIC like Europeans. When will they ever realize we are not like them?
Because we neither believe nor trust anything coming from this government or their cohorts in the msm
Not me. I tuned out from the "nooz" media years ago when I got tired of their lies.
Why should I believe their BS on this?
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