To prove that everything can become a conspiracy, the Washington Post reports this morning that a resistance is building to H1N1 flue shots. Some states and many hospitals are requiring health care workers to get a vaccination — and many workers are resisting. The trend toward mandatory shots is growing because a low percentage of health care workers get vaccinated each year, and because institutions are worried about what will happen if the H1N1 virus spreads widely.
On the other hand, however, people don't want to be told what to do. Many don't feel like the shots are safe. One third of British nurses surveyed said they would avoid the shots for safety reasons. And in the U.S., people don't want a shot because it comes from the government. "You start with health-care workers but then expand that umbrella to make it mandatory for everybody," said Lori Price of Citizens for Legitimate Government, a Bristol, Conn.-based group that opposes government expansion. "It's all part of an encroachment on our liberties."
Meanwhile, the federal government plans to buy enough vaccine for every American, like it or not.