Radio Spots Target African-Americans at Risk for H1N1 Complications

In case you didn't know, it's National Influenza Vaccination Week.

The day after she was sworn in as Surgeon General, Dr. Regina Benjamin and other health officials announced new public service radio spots urging African Americans to get the H1N1 flu vaccine.

The once-scarce vaccine is now readily available and cases of the flu have decreased since the fall. Still, Benjamin – along with Dr. Anthony Fiori, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Garth Graham, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health at the Department of Health and Human Services -- warned against becoming complacent since flu season continues until May. In a Tuesday conference call, Benjamin tried to counter "myths" and promote the vaccine's effectiveness. It's safe, she said, "and it saves lives."

The flu can be especially serious in people with underlying illnesses -- such as asthma, diabetes and heart and kidney disease -- that African Americans suffer from in disproportionate numbers. Benjamin's family reflects the statistics. Her father died with diabetes and high blood pressure, her older brother died at 44 of an HIV-related illness, and her mother died of lung cancer.

The radio PSAs, produced in cooperation with the Ad Council, warn that in people with chronic conditions, H1N1 causes greater risk for "contracting life-threatening complications" such as pneumonia, dehydration "or even death."

A concern, acknowledged in answer to a question, was fear, especially among some minorities, that a government-administered vaccine may not be safe. It cannot give you or your child the flu, Benjamin said, and so far has the same safety record as the seasonal flu vaccine. "It's just wrong," she said, to put yourself or your child at risk "over a rumor." She said problems that led to the recall last month of 800,000 doses of the vaccine because of insufficient potency have been resolved.

President Obama, in a statement released over the weekend, said: "This week presents a window of opportunity for us to prevent a possible third wave of H1N1 flu in the United States. I strongly encourage those who have not yet received the H1N1 flu vaccine to do so." The president and first lady were vaccinated in December, daughters Malia and Sasha in October.

The H1N1 flu has infected some 47 million people; 200,000 have been sick enough to be hospitalized. There were nearly 10,000 deaths between April and November of last year, 1,000 of them children. This week had four flu-related deaths of children, said Fiori.

Graham said HHS will continue to educate diverse communities on combating health disparities that persist.

Benjamin, 53, who holds an MBA as well as a medical degree, founded the nonprofit Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic on the Alabama coast. She rebuilt the clinic in her home state after it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and again by a fire. The recipient of a MacArthur Fellow Program "genius grant," Benjamin was the first black woman and the first doctor under age 40 elected to the American Medical Association's board of trustees.