Flu jab effective?

[vickster]

Flu vaccine rules changed at the time covid appeared. Prior to covid, the pharmacist told me that AF isn't a qualifying condition for flu vaccine, but as I've never seen a copy of the rules as they were previously I don't know whether I was being fobbed off or not.

Ok, I only had AF for 18 months, so no idea. During Covid, 50+ got flu vax free, now back to 65?
GP sent invites, nothing to do with chemist

 

[Psamathe]

suffered what was probably a severe post viral response from an infection in August 2019, and has never fully recovered.

I've often thought that long Covid sounded very similar to other long term post viral conditions for which the NHS (primary) healthcare doesn't seem to provide much help for (ME/CFS and related). Over the last few years I've been quite shocked by the number of debilitating conditions we know so little about and have no real treatment for. And that brings me to what I regard as a "not fit for purpose" pharmaceutical industry where motivation is for profit rather than needs and suffering ...

Ian

 

[Drago]

Like our supermarkets where the motivation is profit and not curing world hunger.

 

[presta]

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a3326dab418ab055592d95/Groceries_2.pdf

 

[multitool]

And that brings me to what I regard as a "not fit for purpose" pharmaceutical industry where motivation is for profit rather than needs and suffering ...

And why, in a capitalist system, should things be any different?

Pharmaceutical products cost a huge amount of money to develop, and the cost and risk is born entirely by the manufacturer. How do you think they raise the capital to fund research?

 

[Psamathe]

And why, in a capitalist system, should things be any different?

Pharmaceutical products cost a huge amount of money to develop, and the cost and risk is born entirely by the manufacturer. How do you think they raise the capital to fund research?

Because to my mind the priority should be to alleviate human suffering, to develop treatments addressing the medical needs of society, not to focus on making the already wealthy even wealthier.

Also, in effect the risk is born by us all in that they know the success rates of developments so cost their successful products to cover the cost of failed developments.

Better a publicly funded research system where research & development can be focused on needs of society rather than profit needs of the wealthy.

Ian

 

[Drago]

But how could with have publicly funded research on that financial scale without taxation income?

And if you publicly fund everything important to society you deprive the state of the tax income it needs to fund such projects in the first place.

I don't have the answer, but that ain't it.

 

[lazybloke]

View attachment 755711

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a3326dab418ab055592d95/Groceries_2.pdf

The big supermarkets must have big overheads. The graph doesn't reflect the true price difference between the shops, which for my typical basket of ingredients is much more than a single digit percentage.
I notice Sains put chocolate eclairs up by more than 50% this week!

PS Also, it's Pomelo season! When are only Lidl and Asda selling them?


PPS what does this have to do with flu jabs?

 

[Psamathe]

But how could with have publicly funded research on that financial scale without taxation income?

And if you publicly fund everything important to society you deprive the state of the tax income it needs to fund such projects in the first place.

I don't have the answer, but that ain't it.

We're paying for it already through the NHS buying drugs, through health insurance premiums (in countries where they apply), etc. The Pharma companies make their profits from selling drugs they develop and ultimately we're the ones paying for those drugs.

Ian

 

[Buck]

Flu vaccine rules changed at the time covid appeared. Prior to covid, the pharmacist told me that AF isn't a qualifying condition for flu vaccine, but as I've never seen a copy of the rules as they were previously I don't know whether I was being fobbed off or not.

The book we use for guidance and to check eligibility is called the Green book and this is updated every year, typically based on JCVI guidance. Specifically you want Chapters 14a and 19.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation-against-infectious-disease-the-green-book

Sometimes the interpretation is the nuance here - with words like "severe" or "chronic" this can leave the clinician needing to interpret eligibility. Asthma was a classic one a couple of years back where the belief was that anyone with asthma was eligible then they redefined this to be severe asthma but this again needed further clarity as to what constitutes severe!!
Ultimately, it is the clinician to decide on whether or not the person presenting is eligible (or not)

 

[presta]

The graph doesn't reflect the true price difference between the shops

It's not a graph of prices.

what does this have to do with flu jabs?

It doesn't:

Like our supermarkets where the motivation is profit and not curing world hunger.

The book we use for guidance and to check eligibility is called the Green book and this is updated every year, typically based on JCVI guidance. Specifically you want Chapters 14a and 19.

Yes, I know, I have a copy with the relevant paragraphs all marked up, what I don't have is a copy of the previous issue before it was revised for covid.

 

[Buck]

@presta AF wasn’t a qualifying condition previously.

 

[lazybloke]

The book we use for guidance and to check eligibility is called the Green book and this is updated every year, typically based on JCVI guidance. Specifically you want Chapters 14a and 19.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation-against-infectious-disease-the-green-book

Sometimes the interpretation is the nuance here - with words like "severe" or "chronic" this can leave the clinician needing to interpret eligibility. Asthma was a classic one a couple of years back where the belief was that anyone with asthma was eligible then they redefined this to be severe asthma but this again needed further clarity as to what constitutes severe!!
Ultimately, it is the clinician to decide on whether or not the person presenting is eligible (or not)

Just had a look. Can't actually

It's not a graph of prices.

That was the point of my comment.
Supermarkets will defend their small margins, but that hides very significant price variations, not just between the stores, but from week to week in the SAME store.
The price-massaging is insidious, especially with loyalty cards.

It's a weekly choice between shall i be fleeced for some products, or do i expend effort and time to be a savvy shopper?

 

[Buck]

This is an extract from the Green Book pre Covid. It's the only one I can find and is from 2008. Apart from the age qualifier (65=> at the time) these are the clinical risk groups deemed eligible.

 

[mr_cellophane]

I've got a Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine tomorrow. My grand-daughter (3 month old) has a mild case of it, but it can be serious