The flu shot scare is off to an early start in NJ (Opinion)

From the state to the pharmacy chains to big pharma to the media, the push is on to GET YOUR FLU SHOT!

It seemed to really pick up steam about a decade ago, when the chain stores started badgering customers to get their flu shot right there. What better way to get more people to take the pharmaceutical product than at the place people go to several times a week? Most people only see their doctor once in a while under normal circumstances. Bypass the middle man, the doctor your rarely see, and go right to the place you go every other day.

Some people don't think it's about public health and more about the money.

If you listen to the media or the medical community, everyone's on board, and it's the right thing to do. When we talked about this on the air last year, I man I know from my town called in to tell us that he got a flu shot early last spring at the urging of his doctor and days later he couldn't walk. He said he was diagnosed with Gullain Barre Syndrome and took months to recover.

While no doctor would come right out and blame the vaccine, he was told it was the only thing that could have triggered it, but they couldn't say for sure. There are thousands of vaccine injured patients that had similar reactions. There are law firms that specifically handle these types of cases, but you almost never hear it covered in the media.

(Editor's note: The CDC acknowledges a potential increased risk of Gullain Barre Syndrome for those who get flu shots, but says cases are very rare, and that a person is more likely to get GBS after getting the flu than after a shot.)

It's the one topic that is sure to fill the phone lines for hours, mostly by people calling to say they would never get it again after a negative experience. Some people call to say they have to get it due to special circumstances like a medical condition or age-related risk. It's up to you and your family and your faith in your physician and the medical community at large.

Most healthy people I know try to avoid it, even in the medical community, but that's hard for them to avoid in most cases. If you're really curious do some digging online and see what you find. There are plenty of law firms with articles but they may be looking for business too. Like I said earlier, to some it's all about the money on one end or the other. Stay well.

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