Newspaper Page Text
IT'S FLU
SEASON
Don't let myths keep you
from getting the vaccination.
U.S. District Court - District of Massachusetts
If You Paid for All or Part of
Your Prescription Drugs
Class Action Settlements May Affect What Consumers
Pay for Thousands of Drugs in the Future.
There are proposed Settlements of two lawsuits
concerning what consumers pay for prescription drugs.
What Are the Settlements About?
First Data Bank (“FDB”) and Medi-Span publish data
that may be used to determine consumer drug prices,
reimbursement costs and co-pays for thousands of
drugs.
The lawsuits claim that FDB wrongfully inflated the
Average Wholesale Price (“AWP") for thousands of
drugs. This information was reported in FDB and
Medi-Span’s printed and electronic databases.
Therefore, some consumers and insurers allegedly
overpaid for thousands of drugs.
Am I Included in the Settlements?
Persons who paid for all or part of their prescription
drugs costs (from approximately 2000 to present)
based on AWP pricing are included. If you paid a
fixed co-payment you are not included.
What Do the Settlements Provide?
There is no money for consumers now. However,
billions of dollars in drug costs may be saved in the
This is only a Summary of the Settlements.
For the Notice of Proposed Class Action Settlements:
Call: 1-800-960-2381 Access: www.FDßMediSpanSettlement.com
Write: FDB/Medi-Span Settlement Administrator
c/o Complete Claim Solutions. LLC, P.O. Box 24730, West Palm Beach. FL 33416
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By DR.TEDD MITCHELL
THIS TIME every year, I talk to my patients about the
cold and influenza season and the need for a flu shot
With most patients, the discussion is short. I remind
them that flu season is just around the comer and that having
the vaccination improves the odds of staying healthy.
But for others, more explanation is needed to put them at
ease about getting immunized. Occasionally, their reluctance is
based on adverse experiences with the vaccination in the past.
That’s understandable. However, some people who resist get-
Legal Notice
future. That is because FDB and Medi-Span will lower
the mark up on thousands of drugs and will stop
publishing the AWP data within two to three years.
What Should I do?
Get the complete information below and read it. Then
you can decide on your legal rights to:
• Remain in the Settlements by doing nothing. You
will be bound by the Court’s rulings but you can
object to or comment on the Settlements.
• Exclude yourself and keep your right to sue FDB
and Medi-Span.
You must exclude yourself or object/comment in
writing by December 21, 2007 as explained in the
detailed Notice.
Court-appointed Counsel represents you. They will
be paid by FDB. You can also hire your own attorney
and appear in Court.
The Court will decide whether to approve the
Settlements at the Fairness Hearings on January 22.
2008 at 2:00 p.m.
A flu shot can’t give you
the flu, but getting the
shot can help keep the
flu from spreading.
4. Being immunized by a flu shot or the inhaled Flu Mist (FDA
approved only for healthy people ages 5 to 49) significantly re
duces the risk of getting the flu.
5. Most folks who get the flu shot have no reaction. Up to 25%
may have some redness and slight swelling at the site. A small
percentage may experience a slight fever, chills and headache
within 24 hours. These symptoms end within a few days.
6. The flu virus mutates from year to year, so a vaccination from
last season is ineffective against this year’s strains.
Flu fiction
1. Flu is just a bad cold. Hardly. Although it’s considered a res
piratory infection, it affects the entire body, causing high fever
(up to 104 F) that’s accompanied by body aches, headaches, nau
sea and dehydration. Even after the infection is gone (it can last
up to two weeks), people can be weak for several more days.
2. You can get the flu from the flu shot No, you can’t. The vac
cine is not made from a live virus.
3. You can get the flu from wet hair or cold weather. No, you
get the flu by coming into contact with someone who is infected.
In the cold of winter, when people cluster indoors, exposure to
the flu virus is more likely, but cold weather itself doesn’t cause
the flu.
4. The flu shot is only for high-risk people. False. People at
high risk definitely need the vaccination, but those at low risk
also should get the shot to help keep the flu from spreading.
5. If I haven’t had the flu by December, I’m in the clear. Flu
season can extend through May. Although it’s never too late in
the season to get the shot, the ideal period for immunization is
from mid-October to mid-November. □
Contributing Editor Tedd Mitchell, M.D., president and medical director
of Dallas' Coojxr Clinic, writes Health Smart every week.
10
USA WEEKEND • Oct. 5-7,2007
ting immunized make up their
minds based on myths about
the flu and the flu shot. It
is important to separate fact
from fiction.
Flu facts
1. Each year, 30,000 to 35,000
Americans die from the flu and
its complications.
2. Because the flu is caused
by a virus, anyone can get it
3. Kids under 5, adults over
50 and people with chronic
medical conditions, such as
asthma, chronic bronchitis
or heart disease, are at high
risk for complications.