Summit Health Updates Executive Briefing on Swine Flu Virus

December 16, 2009 No comments | Back To Home

New paper from wellness provider educates corporations, insurance carriers, and managed care organizations about H1N1 virus

Southfield, MI / December 10, 2009 – Nearly a year after the first mention of swine influenza (H1N1), Summit Health, Inc., has released an update to its executive briefing, “What We Know and Don’t Know about Swine Flu – And What Employers Can Do.”

The revised paper reflects new information as of November 2009 and is available today from the nation’s largest provider of onsite flu shots and employee immunizations. It features tips to help businesses better understand the swine flu virus and what can be done to minimize a company’s risk. Other key topics include:

- Where current outbreaks of the virus are being reported.
- Employer strategies for educating employees, planning for a pandemic, providing flu shots, and employee telecommuting.
- Recommendations for preventing unnecessary exposure.
- Updated information on swine flu vaccines and their availability.

The Summit brief also provides guidance for dealing with employees who fear exposure and won’t report for work, and those who claim to have been infected at the workplace. Also addressed is the question of whether companies can make flu shots mandatory. Finally, the brief helps employers spot the differences between seasonal flu and the H1N1 virus.

“The truth is that no one knows why some people get sicker from the virus than others, nor if future cases are going to have milder or more severe illness,” said Richard Penington, president and CEO of Summit Health. “Nationally, there has been a recent, slight decline in visits to doctors for influenza-like-illness . . . yet flu-related hospitalizations and deaths continue to increase and are very high nationwide, compared to what is expected for this time of year.”

To download a complimentary copy of “What We Know and Don’t Know about Swine Flu – And What Employers Can Do,” visit http://www.summithealth.com/swineflu/

About Summit Health, Inc.
Founded in 1999, Summit Health is now the nation’s highest rated provider of on-site wellness programs, including health screenings, immunizations, coaching, and educational seminars. This focus on quality of service has earned Summit Health customers who include all the leading health plans and over 80 Fortune 500 companies. Summit Health supports all sizes of companies in every zip code. Summit Health differentiates itself through excellence in regulatory and quality compliance, program management, data and claims expertise and the participant experience. To learn more about Summit Health, visit www.SummitHealth.com.

Media Contacts:

Pauline Reisner
Summit Health
734-332-0476

Elrond Lawrence
Fisher Vista, LLC for Summit Health
831-757-9100

Tags: Summit Health

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