News and Tribune

Health & Fitness

May 14, 2009

Indiana health boss cautious about ‘tough’ flu season

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana might face a “really tough flu season” later this year from a new outbreak of swine influenza or another flu strain, state Health Commissioner Judy Monroe told her agency’s executive board Wednesday.

The Indiana State Department of Health will ask counties to hold town hall-style meetings to urge parents and employers to make plans now for a widespread flu outbreak or other health emergency that might keep children home from schools and workers away from their jobs, Monroe said.

Monroe said the current outbreak with 70 confirmed Indiana cases in 10 central and northern counties has served as a “dress rehearsal” for public and private response for a more dire health emergency. All of the Indiana cases have been mild.

“It was a little bit of a wake-up call for those who have been more complacent” in preparing for events that might limit people’s ability to go to work or school, Monroe told the board during its first regular meeting since the worldwide swine flu outbreak last month.

“We could be in for a really tough flu season this winter and fall,” she warned, sounding a cautionary note and explaining that viruses spread more easily during the winter because of less humid conditions and people spending more time indoors.

Text Only | Photo Reprints
Health & Fitness
Twitter Updates
Follow us on twitter
Follow me on Twitter
Hyperlocal Search
Premier Guide
Find a business

Walking Fingers
Maps, Menus, Store hours, Coupons, and more...
Premier Guide
Popular Searches
Powered by Local.com
AP Video
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium 50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns
SEASONAL CONTENT