Posted on 10/19/2009 12:22:54 PM PDT by Mount Athos
Damage control is the name of the game in Berlin on Monday as politicians rush to deny that they are receiving a better, safer swine flu vaccine than ordinary Germans. The first of 50 million doses arrived in Germany on Monday.
But with news breaking over the weekend that top government officials in Berlin will be injected with an alternative vaccine -- one widely seen as safer -- a debate about an alleged two-class medical system has erupted.
The controversy centers on an additive included in the vaccine manufactured by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. The additive includes an inactive strain of the entire flu virus as opposed to virus fragments. Critics say the additive can increase the risk of side effects from the flu vaccine such as fevers and headaches.
An Interior Ministry spokesman told SPIEGEL that the Baxter vaccine had been ordered for all ministries and other agencies as well as for the employees of the Paul Ehrlich Institute, the authority responsible for approving vaccines.
The Green Party's health expert Biggi Bender said that the separate vaccines amount to "big risk for the people, little risk for the government. This type of second-class medicine cannot be allowed to exist in a democracy."
Leading physicians also complained about the planned vaccination. The head of the Institute for Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Bonn, Martin Exner, said: "The fact that politicians and top civil servants in ministries will be vaccinated with a vaccine other than the people is a terrible sign. Today politicians must take what they recommend."
Virologist Alexander Kekulé Hall of the University Hospital said the fact "that the members of the Federal Government and the authorities have any other vaccine is a scandal."
(Excerpt) Read more at spiegel.de ...
“This type of second-class medicine cannot be allowed to exist in a democracy.”
...and certainly not in a republic like ours used to be!
Under the amorphous term “democracy”, all manner of collectivist depravity is allowed to fester and grow,
into what they’re seeing now.
That’s the nature of socialized medicine.
I am not sure why they are surprised.
Oh yes, that nasty Elitist health care system. Little people get the C***, while the Overlords get the Cadillac.
And you can bet THIS story will get bigtime play on CNN!!!
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Apologies to G. Orwell.
Would anyone be suprised if the same were true in the US.
"Some of us are more equal than others...
especially if we're in Government Service."
The politicians are taking the vaccine w/out thimerosol, but we all know thimerosal causes no problems. /sarc
The flu vaccines in this country pretty much all contain thimerosal. You can ask for a thimerosal free vaccine, but the hypocrisy is that they claim to have eliminated thimerosal in vaccines for children, yet they give millions of children a vaccine each year (the flu vaccine) with thimerosal in it.
These idiots are so in love with State dictates and elitist-control of their lives (including health-care), they should overlook such minor things as this.
Here in NY State, the SEIU is protesting NY State’s ordering of mandatory vaccinations for SEIU health-care workers. How hypocritical they are - they promote Gov’t take over everyone’s health-care, but don’t want to live with the consequences!
But, but, but Euopean socialized medicine is so much better than anything we have! They know how to do everything so much better than we do.
And, yes, this is sarcasm, in case you don’t catch that.
i’m sure hini is an attempted manufactured crisis. leftists have to have a crisis, or they can’t consolidate power.
It’s not the thimersol; there is an additive to “boost” effectiness in the the socialized-medicine-made vaccine.
The American (pre-Obama control) vaccine is free of this junk.
Politicians taking the best for themselves! Wow! What a surprise!
< / sarkazm>
That’s not the worst part. Old people, the infirm and Jews are likely having trouble getting even the second-class vaccine. Socialized medicine at its finest. Eat your heart out Michael Moore, you’ve already eaten everything else.
Sometimes I have imaginary evil powers, but I only use them for good. With great imaginary power comes great imaginary responsibility.
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