Onondaga County mass vaccination goes smoothly

Elbridge Elementary School held the first school mass H1N1 vaccination clinic today in Onondaga County, according to the Syracuse Post-Standard.  The clinic started today at four this afternoon and is planned to end at nine tonight.  

Parents registered 1,153 children for the clinic today.  The Post-Standard said many children were happy to find out that the vaccine was a nasal spray rather than a shot.  

This clinic was the first of 17 the County Health Department plans to conduct through December 11 at local schools.  Over 70 staff members were at the clinic to help usher parents and their children through the process and to help administer the vaccine.  

My Take:  Many parents and health officials have been in the news lately due to rumors about the H1N1 vaccine.  This first clinic will help ease many parents feelings about making an appointment for their children.

The Federal Reserve Board proposes strict rules on gift card fees

The Federal Reserve Board has proposed rules Monday on gift cards to limit inactivity fees and expiration dates on the cards and certificates, according to CNN.com.  

Congress asked the Fed to propose these rules in May after the Credit CARD Act was signed.  These proposed rules would prohibit issuers from charging dormancy fees on gift cards, gift certificates, store gift cards, and general-use prepaid cards unless they have been inactive for more than a year.  Once the year is up, issuers can issue one fine per month.

Also according to CNN.com, issuers would not be able to charge fees for monthly maintenance, balance inquiry, transactions, reloading, and at the point of sale.  

My Take:  Many consumers often get blindsided by these hidden fees on gift cards causing them to lose some of their money on the gift cards.  This is very important to keep an eye on especially because of the upcoming holiday season.  

Patriots lose tight one on controversial call

New England Patriots’ coach Bill Belichick chose to go for it on fourth-down on their own 28-yard line with two minutes left in the Patriots-Colts game on Sunday night according to ESPN.com.  

The risky call did not pay off and Belichick ended up getting the majority of the blame for blowing the game against the Colts.  

The Patriots were leading by six with a little over two minutes left in the fourth-quarter against the Colts.  Belichick said he thought going for it on fourth-down was the best way for his team to win the game.  The next day on ESPN Belichick received much criticism from their sportscasters.  

My Take:  This game received much media coverage Sunday night into Monday morning.  It was a highly controversial decision by Belichick and caused many to question his reasoning behind it.