Since September 7, Obama has made a nationally televised address to a rare joint session of Congress and held rallies in Ohio, Minnesota and Maryland to promote his healthcare agenda, an issue that could be a defining one for his presidency.

His run of media interviews includes an unprecedented five that will air on morning TV talkshows on Sunday and he will court late-night viewers on Monday as the only guest on the “Late Show with David Letterman” on CBS.

The barrage has prompted charges that Obama — derided by Republicans as “the world’s biggest celebrity” as he ran for president last year — is diluting his message, just as his fellow Democrats in Congress try to develop and pass a plan to overhaul the $2.5 trillion U.S. healthcare system.

But proponents say the White House made a mistake by leaving it to notoriously fractious Democrats in Congress to make the case for reform during the summer.

Meanwhile, the Republicans — united — told the public that healthcare reform would cost billions, cover illegal immigrants and fund abortions. Scare tactics included talk of “death panels” that would decide on care for the elderly and warnings of a descent into Soviet-style state control.

Analysts say Obama lost control of the message in the face of that opposition and insurance industry lobbying against plans for a government-run insurance plan — the “public option” — designed to bring more competition. Even many conservative Democrats worried about the program’s cost.

“In looking at the way the past four or five months of healthcare debate have gone, the White House needed to change their approach,” said Dan Amundson, research director at George Mason University’s Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington.

“Their best card is Obama himself and his ability to sway a crowd.”

Obama is considered one of the most gifted communicators in recent Democratic Party history, with his campaign for the presidency praised as an almost perfect communications effort.

SENATOR OFFERED PLAN

Democratic Senator Max Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, this week offered an $856 billion, 10-year plan to rein in healthcare costs and reshape the way Americans get coverage, which contains most of the proposals that Obama outlined in his speech to Congress.

Democrats spoke confidently about getting a bill through, although the Baucus measure has failed to gain the support of any Republican legislators.

Some Republicans say people are starting to tune out the president, contending that Obama is promoting an ill-advised plan that will cost far too much and be an unwarranted government intrusion into the private sector.

“The more people learn about the president’s plan, the less they like it,” said Republican strategist Alex Conant. Continued…

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But Mr. Johnson, an 81-year-old resident of an assisted-living facility in Sandy Springs, Ga., will have to wait quite a while before he can roll up his sleeve for a vaccine against this season’s best-known virus: the H1N1 swine flu. People age 65 and older are nearly last in line for that shot.

Older Americans are normally at the front of the queue for shots against the seasonal flu viruses that circulate every fall and winter, and public-health officials and doctors strongly urge them to get one each year. There’s little wonder why: An estimated 36,000 people die in the U.S. every year from the seasonal flu, and 90% of them are 65 or older.

Perk of Age
But so far the new H1N1 flu is largely sparing the 60-plus demographic, instead hitting children and young adults the hardest. While it has spread like wildfire through secondary schools and colleges, and claimed more than 2,800 lives world-wide, few older people have even gotten sick.

That’s because many people 60 and older were exposed to H1N1 viruses that circulated between 1918 and 1957. Those earlier viruses were similar to the new H1N1 virus, so the immunity that some people built up then is helping them now.

A study by scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that about one-third of adults age 60 and older had antibodies that protected them against the new H1N1 virus. By contrast, children had none.

The pattern is similar to one seen in the deadly 1918 pandemic, in which death rates were highest among young adults, according to infectious-disease experts. One possible reason is that older adults had been exposed to similar flu viruses in the 1800s.

Be Patient
With the risk of infection lower for older adults, federal health officials are allotting the swine-flue vaccine first to pregnant women, children and young adults, and anyone under 65 with asthma, diabetes or another medical condition that can increase their risk of complications from the flu. The CDC says older adults should be offered the vaccine only when there’s enough medicine for all the other priority groups.

That’s likely to take a few months. The federal government expects to receive and distribute 195 million doses of swine-flu vaccine by year-end. Officials estimate that 159 million people make up the top-priority groups—not including older adults—though not everyone in those groups is likely to opt for a shot. The new vaccine is free, and many insurance companies have said they will cover administration fees for the shot.

Budgie Amparo, senior vice president of quality and risk management for Emeritus Corp., which operates senior-living facilities, including the facility where Mr. Johnson lives, says it’s working on getting swine-flu vaccine for its residents as quickly as it can through its regular supplier of seasonal-flu shots. “We’ve taken some proactive steps,” Mr. Amparo says. “We were reassured that once it’s available, we’re going to get it.”

Extra Precautions
In the meantime, nurses at Emeritus properties plan to spend more time educating residents about ways to protect themselves from the flu, such as washing their hands, Mr. Amparo says. They will also more actively monitor residents’ health, to reduce their chances of complications should they get the flu. “We want to make sure we’re managing their overall medical condition,” helping residents get medications in a timely fashion, or helping those with respiratory conditions such as asthma see doctors quickly, he says.

One reason for the extra precautions: While older adults account for the fewest U.S. cases of swine flu, the proportion of those who have died is higher than for other age groups, according to CDC data. “Once you do get infected, your risk is higher,” says Charlotte Yeh, chief medical officer for AARP Services Inc., part of the Washington-based advocacy group. Many older Americans have chronic conditions that affect their immune status, making it harder to fight off any flu, she says.

Moreover, the seasonal-flu vaccine may not offer full protection this year against a long-circulating virus that traditionally is linked with more hospitalizations and deaths among older adults than other strains. A new variant of the H3N2 seasonal flu virus has been identified on several continents that differs from the H3N2 strain covered by this year’s vaccine. So far it’s in the minority of H3N2 circulating viruses, and it’s unclear how widely it will circulate in the U.S. this flu season, particularly given the current dominance of the swine-flu virus. But officials at the CDC and the World Health Organization say they’re keeping a close eye on it.

Doctors can’t quickly determine what strain of flu a patient has. “If you come in with all the signs of flu, we can’t tell you which flu you have,” Dr. Yeh says. “The critical thing is that if you have fever, aches, congestion, cough, dizziness, that is something you should talk with your doctor about.” A doctor may prescribe an antiviral such as Tamiflu, which can’t cure the flu but can shorten its duration and severity if started early.

Gemma echoed her, declaring: “I am disgusted. No child should ever have to suffer like this. We deserve answers from the farm and the Health Protection Agency about this horrific bug.”

She and husband Chris, 26, took Alfie and his six-year-old sister to Godstone Farm and Playbarn in Surrey as a treat on the August bank holiday weekend.

Gemma, 24, said: “We’d been half a dozen times – Alfie and his sister love the farm. There was no mention of a possible E.coli outbreak.”

Poor lamb … little Alfie Weaver feeding
sheep on previous visit to farm

A snap of animal-loving Alfie taken on a visit last year shows him tenderly stroking a rabbit. In another he feeds sheep.

This time round the farm was continuing to let children in despite health watchdogs having linked a vicious strain of E.coli to the attraction – where kids can also get close to chickens, ponies, goats, geese and llamas.

Gemma, of Reigate, Surrey, said: “The children petted and stroked the animals as all children do.

Terrified
“I stood over them and made sure they washed their hands with soap and water afterwards.

“We headed over to the picnic area and had a packed lunch.

“Then Alfie and his sister played in the sandpit and in the play barns – which are like a children’s playground.

Picnic … goats congregate at food table

“The kids were as happy as anything. But a few days later Alfie said, ‘My tummy hurts’.

“He grew desperately ill and started passing blood. I was terrified. It’s every mother’s worst nightmare.”

Gemma rushed him to casualty. Doctors found his kidneys ravaged by the dreaded E.coli 0157 strain.

Alfie has since had to undergo two blood transfusions plus three blood tests every day.

Horrified Gemma, who has kept a daily vigil with her council worker husband at East Surrey Hospital in Redhill, said: “As the E.coli kicked in he spent four days in total agony – screaming out with pain.

Farm manager …
Richard Maule-Oatway

“He was given fluids through a drip and barely moved on the bed except to cry out in pain.

“This farm should have been shut down earlier in August if kids tested positive for the bug then.”

Two-year-old twins Aaron and Todd Mock were also the worst-hit among 12 under-tens taken to hospital so far.

Last night both were on kidney dialysis machines at St Thomas’ Hospital in central London.

Twenty-four other children and adults have fought off the bug at home – amid fears of an epidemic because the infected farm was allowed to remain open for two weeks.

Yesterday Health Protection Agency officials admitted they were “possibly” wrong to advise owners they could carry on admitting up to 2,000 visitors a day.

The gates were belatedly padlocked on Saturday. Yesterday experts tested samples from animal pens to pinpoint the exact source of the E.coli.

Awful
Meanwhile goats frolicked on tables normally used by picnickers.

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The farm’s manager Richard Maule-Oatway said of the outbreak yesterday: “We feel we have done enough until we know the cause of the problem – then we can go from there.”

But the attraction’s owner – a silver-haired gran aged 70 – confessed: “I wish we’d closed sooner.”

Jackie Flaherty said at her home in nearby Woldingham: “We have always followed the advice given by the health authorities. I was horrified when we learned we had E.coli on the site and have felt steadily worse as the number of cases increased.

“It’s awful for the poor children and the families affected. All we can do now is co-operate with the authorities until we pinpoint the source of the problem.”

The mum of four added: “We’ve steadily built up the business at Godstone and are hoping the business won’t have been destroyed by this.

“I’ve been encouraged by a great many emails and messages of support from regular visitors who say they’ll be back as soon as we reopen.”