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WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 /PRNewswire/ --
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to: http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/fff/36289/
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News Facts
Quotes, Photos and Bios
Anne Schuchat, M.D. Assistant Surgeon General and Director, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC:
Click here to read a bio of Anne Schuchat.
Julie Moise, FFF board member and mother of 6-1/2-month-old Ian, who died suddenly from influenza in December 2003:
Click here to read Ian's story.
Click here to download a high resolution photo of Ian Moise.
Click here to read a bio of Julie Moise.
Please contact Laura Scott to arrange an interview and/or for additional quotes.
About Families Fighting Flu, Inc.
Families Fighting Flu (FFF) is a non-profit, volunteer-based organization established in 2004 that is made up of families and healthcare practitioners. Each family has experienced first-hand the death of a child due to the flu or has had a child experience severe medical complications from the flu. We are dedicated to educating people about the severity of influenza and the importance of vaccinating children against the flu every year. Through education and advocacy, we hope to improve the rates of childhood flu vaccinations and help reduce the number of childhood illnesses and deaths caused by the flu each year. For more information, visit www.familiesfightingflu.org or call 1-888-2ENDFLU.
-- Families Fighting Flu (FFF), together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are designating today, December 9, the second annual Children's Flu Vaccination Day to remind parents that it's not too late to get their children vaccinated against influenza, or "the flu." -- Children's Flu Vaccination Day emphasizes the critical need for all children aged six months through 18 years to get vaccinated against the flu. The day occurs during the CDC's annual National Influenza Vaccination Week (December 8-14, 2008). -- Children die every year in the United States from influenza and its complications. In fact, over the past five flu seasons more than 400 children have died from influenza, and more than 20,000 children under the age of five are hospitalized due to influenza each year. -- Only 22 percent of children six to 23 months of age were fully vaccinated against influenza during the 2007-2008 flu season, even though the CDC recommends that all of these children get vaccinated every year. -- To help spread the word about the importance of childhood flu vaccinations, FFF created an e-card for parents to send to their loved ones and friends to remind them to get their children vaccinated against flu. -- The CDC recommends that all children aged six months through 18 years get vaccinated against the flu every year, as well as all persons who want to reduce the risk of becoming ill with the flu or transmitting it to others. This includes (but is not limited to): children with certain medical conditions; household contacts (parents, siblings, grandparents, etc.) and caregivers of children less than five years old; and, household contacts of other high-risk individuals.
SOURCE Families Fighting Flu (FFF)
