Mandate

Get pricked or get fired. Unless you have a demonstrable allergy to eggs.

New York state issued a mandate for all health care workers to be immunized with this year's flu vaccine and the H1N1 vaccine when it's available.

When you tell people they HAVE to do something, it stirs people to the verge of mutiny.

"While we encourage nurses to be immunized for the flu, we do not agree that nurses should be required to be immunized every year as a condition of employment.The seasonal flu vaccine is not 100% effective and sometimes is highly ineffective, as it was in 2005 and 2007. There is no guarantee that in any given year, the public will benefit from mandatory immunization of healthcare providers." -New York State Nurses Association

Give me this year's flu shot, but don't give me the H1N1 shot.
The swine flu vaccine is a rushed product. It's considered safe based on studies from a small limited sample. My tin foil hat senses government-corporate conspiracy when the new vaccine falls under the PREP Act. That means the vaccine manufacturer(s) has immunity from lawsuits related to the vaccine. So, those who will develop Guillain-Barre, Steven-Johnsons, or anaphylaxis are simply trading one illness for another.

Uncertainty fans fear and I'm throwing in some kindling here. But for a health care model that values patient autonomy, none can be found in this situation. Of course, the state and our employers don't see us as patients, even though we are the receiving end of that needle. They see us as workers and vaccination is like insurance for them. Human subjects in research are lucky. They have informed consent. I don't and I feel like a guinea pig in this process.