Israel low on flu vaccines as virulent strain hits

In Israel, at least 100 people have been hospitalized in a serious condition with complications from the flu virus so far this winter, compared to just 45 last year; just 150,000 vaccines remain, leaving some 7 million Israelis to potentially spend the rest of the winter unvaccinated. Israelis turning to health maintenance organizations (HMOs) to receive flu vaccines said on Sunday they were being turned down due to shortages of influenza shots to combat a strain proving more harmful than those of previous years.