It’s starting to look like the goal is to thin the herd over winter. The meeting normally engaged to consult on this years flu shot was cancelled.

Whatever you do or don’t do with a flu shot, it keeps your parents and grandparents safer and the local hospital and urgent care less clogged.

No flu shot means, statistically, a lot more elderly admitted to hospital beds, or dead. More than anticipated admissions over the holidays affects everyone seeking healthcare for any reason.

That’s the local piece. Public health is also what tracks that new thing in Africa or China when it happens. Or Ebola showing up in the United States. One person on a plane is all it takes. One. And they’re looking to dismantle our tracking capacity for both location and threat level.