WP: In Montgomery ("Flu Vaccine Powerball"), High-Risk Have Small Chance

[DeepModem Mom]

In Montgomery Flu Shot Lottery, The High-Risk Have Small Chance

By Darragh Johnson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 22, 2004; Page B08


The calls kept coming. And coming. With 800 flu shots to give away, Montgomery County's Health Department began accepting names for its lottery at 8 a.m. yesterday....

***

By 1:30 p.m., about 4,500 had given their names -- and 4,500 more had logged on to the Health Department's Web site, where flu shot hopefuls could fill out their information online. By day's end, at 6:30 p.m., health officials expected to have logged as many as 10,000 names, and they have two more 10 1/2-hour days to take names....

***

The questions that callers had to answer correctly to be registered were: 1. Are you a Montgomery County resident? 2. Are you high risk? What category?...

***

"We only have 800 shots," school nurse Julie Olson said into her phone. "The lucky winners will get it."

The odds of winning -- in a county of about 900,000 people -- have become slight enough that some local media dubbed Montgomery County's solution the Flu Vaccine Powerball....


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52782-2004Oct21.html

[skooooo]

1. This is disgusting

[Bronco69]

2. Absolutely disgusting!

n/t

[skooooo]

3. No need for "terrorists" with "biological weapons"...

...It's not profitable to keep the population healthy, so what's the diff??