They told us that this years' flu vaccine was a rootin'-tootin' sure thing. Yeah, about that:
Outbreaks of influenza are getting an early start this year in part because of cold weather gripping much of the USA and low efficacy associated with this year's flu vaccine.
"It's just one of those years where the CDC is seeing that this strain of flu is only somewhat covered by the vaccine that was given this year," said Jennifer Radtke, manager for infection prevention at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. "They're seeing that it's anywhere from 10% to 33% effective, so any time there’s a mismatch between the vaccine and the circulating strain of the flu, you’re going to see more cases."
Peak flu season usually hits in February, so stock up now and stay away from the stores later. It's just one of those years....
Subway's not feeling so well either: over 900 stores closed this year, and a third of the remainder aren't turning a profit. That whole Jared thing hit them hard, but they're also having quality control issues, among other problems:
Last week, the New York Post reported that roughly 400 franchisees were protesting the chain's plan to bring back the $5 footlong deal. On Monday, Subway's head of North American marketing, Karlin Linhardt, resigned from the company.
And traffic has fallen 25% over the past five years, the Post reported, citing an internal memo it obtained.
I can see why all the Radio Shacks around here have disappeared, as you can buy most of what they used to peddle almost anywhere, today. But you've really got to be screwing up to lose food customers like Subway's been losing them.