CLOSE TO 200 CHILDREN DIE OF FLU IN 2017

In 1918 over 50,000 people died from the Spanish flu. We are at the 100-year mark of that devastation and the very best way to acknowledge a terrible time in our history is by getting your flu shot. Does it protect against every strain? No; not possible. Every influenza virus is a constantly moving target. Does it give some people the flu? Absolutely not. But it does take some time to begin to protect the recipient. Is that a reason not to get your shot? Heavens NO. Of those 181 children who died last year, almost all of them had not been vaccinated and a large number did not have access to the vaccination. This is not a pitch for Walgreens, it is a simple fact that by getting your flu shot at Walgreens means that somewhere an underprivileged child will receive his or her vaccination at no charge. With that knowledge, it becomes our civic duty to get vaccinated. Not because it is a 100% effective solution, but because it isn’t. We should do everything we can to protect our communities and taking a few minutes to step into a nearby Walgreens to get vaccinated means you are less likely to spread the virus. It means you are setting a standard for community responsibility. It means that somewhere, someone’s child may not die because you took those few minutes. Oh, and by the way, please do not go to work if you are ill. Thank you.