California health officials think they've found a way to deliver information to the youthful masses: text messaging. With the H1N1 flu virus disproportionately striking younger people, the state Department of Public Health is looking to harness the popularity of cell phones and text messaging to make it easier for people to get vaccinated. » read more

Swine flu disproportionately hits the young and the asthmatic, the pregnant and the diabetic. A federal study says American Indians also are at high risk. American Indians and Alaska Natives are four times more likely to die from H1N1 than all other ethnic groups combined, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study that looked at the indigenous population in 12 states, representing half of America's total. » read more

Health workers in North Carolina have more than the H1N1 virus to worry about: Cases of syphilis in the state have nearly doubled in the past year. Statistics show syphilis and other sexually transmitted disease rates rising nationwide. » read more

The federal government's preparedness for the H1N1, or swine flu, pandemic that's claimed far more than 1,000 lives nationwide was inadequate and incomplete, a congressional subcommittee said Tuesday. » read more

If swine flu sneezes, will health care reform catch a cold? Long lines and vaccine shortages could convince millions of Americans — and one or two crucial members of Congress — that a Washington that can't deliver flu shots can't deliver health care reform either. The White House, perhaps sensing the political as well as policy implications of the swine flu effort, stepped up its public response to the sickness over the past week. » read more

Her relatives and her doctors feared that 15-year-old Andrea Samples would die after she became infected with the H1N1 virus. A machine that helped oxygenate her blood saves her life. » read more