Swine Flu - General Discussion and how it affects Disney

[Moonstorm]

Hey! We are to be in Disney from 4/29 - 5/6! We are driving, so at least we don't have to worry about being on a plane with recycled air! I hope they figure this out and get it contained soon!

Family Disney Vacations

2008 Trip Report

Next Trip: 4/29/09 - 5/6/09 at the Polynesian! ​

 

[fraggle1_rs]

subscribing

 

[Feralpeg]

Peg, I totally agree you should be more vigil.
You are in a high risk area everyday!!! Even though we love you for it

You have also had health problems that could weaken your immune system.

I am being more vigil as my oldest has really bad asthma and has been in the hospital 8 times in almost 15 years.

The average healthy person who doesn't live in "Its a small germ after all...." has much less to worry about at this point.

By the way it was great talking to you the other day!

Thanks, Brook. I love it when I get a call from one of my DIS friends.

Every so often, I'll get a call and they'll say "Are you who I think you are?".

I'll say "Who do you think I am?"

And they'll say "Are you the Peggy from the DIS?"

"That would be me." They seem so excited. It makes me feel like a celebrity! LOL!

 

[fraggle1_rs]

thanks for this thread, learning lots

 

[praline3001]

Peggy ~

Maybe I should get ya'll to add a can of lysol spray to the gift boxes

I can see it now ~ welcome kits made up with little medical masks (complete with mickey head print) little bottles of purell and clorox wipes and lysol spray

The premium package can have rubber gloves and complete bio hazard costumes


I know this is serious and I am not making light of the situation but a little humor goes a long way

 

[Feralpeg]

Peggy ~

Maybe I should get ya'll to add a can of lysol spray to the gift boxes

I can see it now ~ welcome kits made up with little medical masks (complete with mickey head print) little bottles of purell and clorox wipes and lysol spray

The premium package can have rubber gloves and complete bio hazard costumes

I know this is serious and I am not making light of the situation but a little humor goes a long way

I love it. You know, Disney like to be proactive. I'm sure they would be interested. Of course, we accept all major credit cards! LOL!

 

[ktbug103]

We aren't going until late July but I am definetely watching this. If it gets worse and more widespread we will be canceling before the final payment. Can anyone remind me of Disney's cancelation policies before the 45 day mark?

I also wanted to point out to the people comparing this to the 70's outbreak - while I haven't researched it much I just want to point out that this is a different strain. It's a mix between avian, swine and human. This strain has never even been seen in pigs. The biggest worry with this is that it will mirror the 1918 flu pandemic. Of course even if it would we have healthcare resources now. This flu also seems to be hitting young healthy people instead of the young, elderly and immune supressed like a normal yearly flu strain does.

 

[praline3001]

Just to put a Disney spin on this ~

There has been a lot of talk about the 1918 pandemic ~
Walt Disney himself came down with the flu from that outbreak and ..well of course he was one of the survivors.

I just read that when researching the 1918 outbreak and thought I would share!

 

[RMulieri]

Honestly, I am really not all that surprised to have a Pandemic flu. We have been very fortunate for many decades, and while healthcare and medicine has improved, we have had serious setbacks with infection control. I know my hospital is already having meetings on handling it should a more extensive outbreak become a reality. Not much you can do to avoid it other than basic hand sanitation and good hygiene, as well as proper sneezing,coughing , and nose blowing.

 

[wehavesix]

The number of people who contracted West Nile Virus (a much more serious flu)
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/surv&controlCaseCount07_detailed.htm

3,630 people in the US contracted west Nile. 124 died from it (there is the short version in case you don't want to click on the link)

First of all West Nile is NOT a flu and doesn't have flu like symptoms. It's a variety of encephalitis or meningitis and affects the brain. Another huge difference is that West Nile is not passed from person to person. It's contracted from infected mosquitoes. If you are bitten by an infected mosquito, you may contract West Nile encephalitis. Many, many people are bitten and never get sick or have such a mild case they don't realize that's what they have. West Nile is so common in my area that I'm virtually certain most of us have been exposed and are somewhat immune now. It's only the very vulnerable who need be concerned.

As for this new flu, it will have to become much more widespread for me to worry about it. Of course, I work in a major germ pit as a school teacher so routinely observe universal precautions. We had a really rough flu season this year with type A and B viruses going around in my area. We just kept things as clean as possible and kept after the kids to cover coughs and sneezes and wash hands often. It didn't stop the flu but hopefully it slowed down it's spread.

I think you make a great point though that many other illnesses are more widespread so far than this virus. It seems that the CDC and WHO are concerned with the fact that this flu spreads easily from person to person and that it is hardest on healthy people. In that way it seems to mimic the 1918 flu. The main difference I see is that our health care and the involvement of the CDC and WHO can really make a difference in how bad such a flu can become.

 

[Avid Disney]

Update: So Disney just got back to me after "researching" and said I declined the trip insurance. I said I would have my lawyer call them and the minute I said lawyer the woman said, "Sir I have to end this call now because you mentioned contacting a lawyer." LOL. ok. I got her name though. Is this worth pursuing. Why would they deny someone the right to add insurance a day after making payment? Is it the swine flu?

 

[praline3001]

First of all West Nile is NOT a flu and doesn't have flu like symptoms.

I NEVER said it was the flu nor did I say malaria was the flu either. I posted what I did so it could be put in perspective that its not the time to panic and run out and buy bio hazard suits just yet.

 

[Alesia]

Update: So Disney just got back to me after "researching" and said I declined the trip insurance. I said I would have my lawyer call them and the minute I said lawyer the woman said, "Sir I have to end this call now because you mentioned contacting a lawyer." LOL. ok. I got her name though. Is this worth pursuing. Why would they deny someone the right to add insurance a day after making payment? Is it the swine flu?

You are never allowed to add trip insurance after you have made the final payment.

 

[CLR4321]

Keep in mind...swine flu is a virus. Antibacterial hand sanitizer will be ineffective on killing the germs. The best thing to do is wash your hands as often as possible in warm (the hotter the better) soapy water and avoid touching your face. If I were going to WDW before the virus runs it's course, I would be washing up at least once per hour. I may even go as far as to bring a handkerchief to use to open doors, and avoid touching surfaces that are commonly touched (ride car handle bars, for example). Better to be safe than sorry. If anyone looks at you funny, who cares. If you are preventing yourself from getting sick, that is the main thing.

 

[Lucky4me]

If this thing takes off, I can assure you, getting a refund from Disney will be the least of our problems.
If you want to know what you can do right now to protect yourself and your family, go to the CDC website and click on or search Pandemic flu. Everything you need to know plus a whole lot more is there. www.cdc.gov

 

[CLR4321]

Update: So Disney just got back to me after "researching" and said I declined the trip insurance. I said I would have my lawyer call them and the minute I said lawyer the woman said, "Sir I have to end this call now because you mentioned contacting a lawyer." LOL. ok. I got her name though. Is this worth pursuing. Why would they deny someone the right to add insurance a day after making payment? Is it the swine flu?

It is because they don't want people who have paid for their trip already to buy insurance after the fact if they decide that they need to cancel their trip. It's not just Disney. It's just like if you bought something from the store and declined an extended warranty, then came back later and said you wanted it afterall (people would be doing this right and left if their purchases malfunctioned after buying them). Also, many companies do instruct that agents end the call if a customer mentions taking legal action. This is because companies normally have separate departments that handle cases where legal action is being taken, and I am certain Disney has a department like this with the many people that try to sue Disney. To answer your question, this has nothing to do with the swine virus.

 

[bytheblood]

I don't worry about stuff like this.

And...just because I am that girl, I always use hand sanitizer.

 

[Cookie Princess]

Talk about timing, DH and I were just speaking about our upcoming trip to WDW in August and the swine flu. We will be watching this situation closely as we have a son with Crohn's Disease. If this hits Florida, I will start to worry.

 

[wehavesix]

It is because they don't want people who have paid for their trip already to buy insurance after the fact if they decide that they need to cancel their trip. It's not just Disney. It's just like if you bought something from the store and declined an extended warranty, then came back later and said you wanted it afterall (people would be doing this right and left if their purchases malfunctioned after buying them). Also, many companies do instruct that agents end the call if a customer mentions taking legal action. This is because companies normally have separate departments that handle cases where legal action is being taken, and I am certain Disney has a department like this with the many people that try to sue Disney. To answer your question, this has nothing to do with the swine virus.

I agree and would like to add we were told this by a Disney agent after I was seriously injured in EPCOT last year. We didn't threaten to sue or anything but just as standard procedure we were told of their policy IF a guest mentions hiring a lawyer.

 

[fluff_astrid]

Wow, this has become quite a thread!

I'm not going to worry too much, I've probably already been exposed to it thanks to all the folks I work with coming to the office sick...

I figure if it's airborne and since it's being reported worldwide, it's already "too late" to quarantine myself indoors and hide (and if I did that with every disease I'd be a wreck!). I'll just be vigilant and keep up on the vitamins and such. But if everyone else wants to cancel, more empty Disney parks for me!

Largest concern now is my boyfriend is in China on business, and I'm hoping he can get back into the country before they do any international travel restrictions...we're supposed to head to WDW on May 8th!