Global and U.S. health officials warned Tuesday of major flu shot shortages after British health officials abruptly pulled the license of the maker of half the U.S. vaccine just as flu season was about to begin.
The news means the United States will face “a significant shortage,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the National Institutes of Health (news – web sites)’s infectious disease chief.
…
In an average year, flu kills 36,000 people and hospitalizes another 114,000, mostly the elderly.