Flu Outbreak Threatens to Slow Economy

[QuickZ06]

LoL! Are they really going to try and sell this? Are the masses really this dumb?


One of the worst flu seasons in a decade is putting further strains on an already sluggish U.S. economy as companies get slammed with increased health care costs and lower productivity from widespread worker absences.

On average, seasonal flu outbreaks cost U.S. employers $10.4 billion in direct costs of hospitalization and outpatient visits, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That doesn't include the indirect costs related to lost productivity and worker absenteeism.

But this year, that figure is expected to go much higher, as the flu virus has shown up in some 41 states with 29 of them reporting high or severe levels of sickness as thousands are flooding into hospital emergency rooms and doctor's offices.

"If this is a major influenza outbreak, like the Spanish flu of 1918, it could have a very significant effect on economic growth," said Timothy G. Nash professor in Free Market Economics at Northwood University. "If GDP is projected to be be 2 percent this year, the flu could cut that back to one half percent growth rate."

"A non-epidemic flu costs the U.S.economy with roughly 36,000 lives and causes more than 200,000 people to be hospitalized and costs our economy," Nash said. "We don't know if this is a like 1918 but we can't ignore the serious nature of what's going on."

"The last thing we need in a slow economy is a major flu epidemic," said Paul Paul Mangiamele, CEO of the Bennigan's restaurant chain located throughout the U.S. "It's bad enough as it is without the flu taking even more customers away."

Mangiamele said his company is on "orange alert' to try and keep the flu impact to a minimum.

More in the article.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100369848

[phill4paul]

If it weren't for the flu we would be in the throes of an economic recovery. Or so the CEO of Bennigan's implies.

[Rudeman]

Yes and Yes.

[oyarde]

Well , Yeah, there is the flu, there are lower wages , higher property taxes , higher insurance costs, higher payroll taxes, no jobs, declining dollar , higher heating costs,Hol temp jobs eliminated, other jobs laying off ( medical ) , due to health care bill tax increases .......

[phill4paul]

And on top of that I have to wait until January 22nd to e-file for my refund. Won't be any spending until March.

[oyarde]

Food costs rising, corn high, livestock , including milk cattle slaughterd due to feed costs , raising the cost of eggs , milk , chicken , beef , any processed food related to corn...

[oyarde]

And on top of that I have to wait until January 22nd to e-file for my refund. Won't be any spending until March. By march , the realization should have started to set in , no growth , zero , no jobs , etc.

[phill4paul]

By march , the realization should have started to set in , no growth , zero , no jobs , etc.

Ammo retailers will get a bump from me. If they have any inventory left.

[american.swan]

OP.... Yes.

[Warrior_of_Freedom]

it's the Obama strain

[paulbot24]

Obamas Clusterfuckplex.

[Tpoints]

Can it do any worse than what Sandy already did?

[John F Kennedy III]

Nope, don't you dare look at the Fed. Nothing to see there. We were on our way to a surplus until some asshole in Cali called in sick. I hate that guy.

[purplechoe]

People get hospitalized because of the flu? I would never even go to a doctor for such a thing. There is no cure for it, all you can do is take something to alleviate the symptoms while you body does it's thing.

I actually have one right now. My nephews girlfriend got almost everybody sick in my house a couple of days ago. I was pissed at him. I told him he should have just went to her house and stay there with her instead of bringing her over here coughing and puking her guts out. I was not very happy with him yesterday when I told him she got most of us sick.

[JK/SEA]

NFL playoffs...people partying..calling in sick on monday...

i think we need to form a commission and investigate this.

[NCGOPer_for_Paul]

Does anyone ever question the validity of the reporting of this?

It seems like every year, the morons on TV news scream "IT'S THE WORST FLU SEASON EVAR!!!!" When have we had a year when the flu wasn't "bad"?

I picked up something bad in Tampa in August. I felt like shit for two weeks after coming home (and it wasn't all because of Boehner and Priebus), and had the cough until early October. I didn't whine or go to any doctor. Just took what I had, medicine wise, and let the virus run it's course. That's all you can do.

[TER]

People get hospitalized because of the flu? I would never even go to a doctor for such a thing. There is no cure for it, all you can do is take something to alleviate the symptoms while you body does it's thing.

I actually have one right now. My nephews girlfriend got almost everybody sick in my house a couple of days ago. I was pissed at him. I told him he should have just went to her house and stay there with her instead of bringing her over here coughing and puking her guts out. I was not very happy with him yesterday when I told him she got most of us sick.

The ER I work in is getting hit really bad right now because of the flu (my friends in different cities are saying the same thing). I agree that most shouldn't come to the ED for it, but some cases can get quite serious. People get hospitalized for it and can die from this illness (the last time this strain of flu became endemic was in 2003/2004 when almost 40000 Americans died from it. It is a particularly virulent strain, especially on the elderly). The flu definitely negatively effects the economy due to the medical costs and the time off work (people are told to stay out of work and school for 1 week in order to decrease transmission). Of course, this is just a small blip on the screen in terms of factors which are negatively affecting the economy, but it does affect it nonetheless.

[TER]

Last year was one of the lightest flu seasons in a long time. This is shaping up to be a repeat of the 2003/2004 epidemic.

[pacodever]

However, pharmaceutical companies must be doing well the way MSM is pushing vaccines that they admit are at least 50% ineffective but MIGHT reduce the severity of symptoms no matter how late into the flu season it gets (a claim that is impossible to prove/disprove).

[TER]

However, pharmaceutical companies must be doing well the way MSM is pushing vaccines that they admit are at least 50% ineffective but MIGHT reduce the severity of symptoms no matter how late into the flu season it gets (a claim that is impossible to prove/disprove).

This year's vaccine includes the H3N2 strain in it which is the current strain which is causing the epidemic, so in theory, it should help decrease the number of people becoming infected.

[pacodever]

A lot of these People need to quit going to the ER and stay at home, rest, and drink fluids. A lot of these morons are dehydrated and just taking up hospital resources just to get an IV and Ibuprofen. Resources that could be focused on the severely sick, elderly, and children.

[TER]

A lot of these People need to quit going to the ER and stay at home, rest, and drink fluids. A lot of these morons are dehydrated and just taking up hospital resources just to get an IV and Ibuprofen. Resources that could be focused on the severely sick, elderly, and children.

Exactly true. The scary part? Wait until Obamacare is fully implemented when there will be 40 million more people with insurance and the same amount of EDs and doctors caring for them. The EDs are going to look like war zones with average wait times of 8+ hours to see a doctor during such outbreaks... Not looking forward to it...

[CaptUSA]

The flu absolutely has an economic impact. Anything that reduces productivity has an economic impact. Right now, I am struggling with the productivity of my workforce due to the flu. I have many people who are not working, and I have others whose work is slowed or impaired.

On a broad scale, this does hurt the economy. I can't believe people in here can't understand that.

However, the impact of this loss of productivity is nothing compared to the loss of productivity caused by the misallocation of resources in which our government concocts.

[pacodever]

I heard that around 10% of the vaccines administered don't cover this year's strain and typically even if it covers the right strain, still only 70% effective. And that is not accounting for antigenic drift which is more likely during a long flu season which we appear to be approaching the half way point. Seems irresponsible to recommend a flu shot this late in the season, especially when it will take 2-3 weeks to become effective.

[TER]

I heard that around 10% of the vaccines administered don't cover this year's strain and typically even if it covers the right strain, still only 70% effective. And that is not accounting for antigenic drift which is more likely during a long flu season which we appear to be approaching the half way point. Seems irresponsible to recommend a flu shot this late in the season, especially when it will take 2-3 weeks to become effective.

We are not late in the flu season which typically starts around Feb. and March. This outbreak is earlier then normal and which is predictive of a more widespread and longer epidemic, so getting the vaccine now should in theory be beneficial. What would be more irresponsible is not recommending it because it is 'only' 50-70% effective (which is pretty good considering they have to guess before hand which strains to prepare for).

[pacodever]

Flu season does not start in Feb/March. It typically peaks in February if you're talking about the US.

[wgadget]

There's always an excuse, isn't there? Overspending fiat money is never one of them.

[kathy88]

Does anyone ever question the validity of the reporting of this?

It seems like every year, the morons on TV news scream "IT'S THE WORST FLU SEASON EVAR!!!!" When have we had a year when the flu wasn't "bad"?

I picked up something bad in Tampa in August. I felt like shit for two weeks after coming home (and it wasn't all because of Boehner and Priebus), and had the cough until early October. I didn't whine or go to any doctor. Just took what I had, medicine wise, and let the virus run it's course. That's all you can do.

I got it in Tampa, too. I started getting sick the day I left.

[Demigod]

Just to get this clear.People go to a hospital for a FLU ? And you take vaccines for FLU ?

[dinosaur]

The people in hospitals are probably old people who started having trouble breathing due to pnemonia or other complications. I doubt they went at the first sign of a flu.

btw, I picked up something in Tampa too. It lasted for weeks.

[TER]

Flu season does not start in Feb/March. It typically peaks in February if you're talking about the US.

You are right. It usually peaks late February/ early March. We don't usually see much of it in the ED until around that time, so I mispoke. This year, it started in December which is an early start time to see so many cases and it is not common to see the EDs deluged with flu before/just after New Years.

[MoneyWhereMyMouthIs2]

The flu absolutely has an economic impact. Anything that reduces productivity has an economic impact. Right now, I am struggling with the productivity of my workforce due to the flu. I have many people who are not working, and I have others whose work is slowed or impaired.

On a broad scale, this does hurt the economy. I can't believe people in here can't understand that.


I understand it, and think it's overstated.

And these stories usually come from a viewpoint of people whining because OTHER people are not being "productive" enough. So you're gonna see a certain amount of resistance or annoyance from people who understand that, or from people who understand what a labor supply curve looks like.

[kathy88]

I understand it, and think it's overstated.

And these stories usually come from a viewpoint of people whining because OTHER people are not being "productive" enough. So you're gonna see a certain amount of people who understand that, or from people who understand what a labor supply curve looks like.

Then you have those who will take advantage of the situation, decreasing their productivity and blaming it on the flu.

[TER]

The people in hospitals are probably old people who started having trouble breathing due to pnemonia or other complications. I doubt they went at the first sign of a flu.

btw, I picked up something in Tampa too. It lasted for weeks.

Before New Years, 18 children already died in the US due to this years flu. But you are right, the majority who get hospitalized/die are elderly people with respiratory complications and super infections with bacteria. Some strains however seem to effect young healthy people more then other strains (due to an exaggerated immunological response).

[thoughtomator]

I'd rather take my chances with the flu than with the medical system. Go to a hospital these days, you catch something much worse.

[NCGOPer_for_Paul]

Funny, two others say they picked something up in Tampa. My wife didn't pick anything up, so the "conspiracy theory" of the RNC putting virus germs in Paul delegate rooms is out.

I just chalked it up to stress, not getting enough sleep, not eating normally, and never had experienced that kind of combination of heat and humidity while wearing a suit.

It hit me on I-4 just outside of Tampa. My wife saw a sign for a winery and we stopped. I didn't feel like sampling anything because I was so wiped out. We only got as far as Jacksonville before I needed to stop and sleep. Made it home the next day and I felt like **** for the next two weeks.

[pacodever]

This year's vaccine is 62% effective according to the CDC report this week.

[madengr]

I have been out of work this whole week, first taking care of my two sick kids, then getting sick myself. I got the flu shot but it didn't help. Today is the first time in 6 days no one has a fever.

[donnay]

I got it in Tampa, too. I started getting sick the day I left.


I have a friend that was in Tampa too, and when she got home she and the person she went with were sick with this stuff for two weeks!

[MoneyWhereMyMouthIs2]

Then you have those who will take advantage of the situation, decreasing their productivity and blaming it on the flu.


True, but that's between them and their employer. It's like those "lost productivity" stories for people calling in sick who (*gasp*) aren't even sick at all. That's why I mentioned a labor supply curve, in fact. People making arguments that others are not "productive" enough could use the same arguments to suggest that 50 hour work weeks should be mandatory.

Though, in this case, I think it's mostly excuses of why there is no real recovery.