Speech 2: Topic Proposal

    College campuses are perfect places for the spread of infectious sicknesses, like influenza. This virus is an endemic to the United States, hospitalizing many people each season. It is crucial for students and staff to recieve their vaccine in order to protect not only themselves, but every person they may come in contact with. In classes and walking through campus, I constantly hear coughing and sneezing. The whole university community is susceptible.

    Now that the debate over whether the flu shot is "safe" to get is over, we can look at people's accesibility to the vaccine. My proposal for this assignment is why the flu shot should be free to all enrolled students of the University of Iowa. Our health and wellness services, as well as the local pharmacies, offer the developed vaccine at the hefty price of $55, unless covered by insurance. Most students are not at the financial stance to fork over that amount of money. Many others are unsure about their insurance coverage and how to check it. I have the knowledge of how to get the flu shot here, but I would need to research more about the process of insurance and expenses. 

    As a public health major, vaccines and community health are a big interest of mine, especially when it relates to a population I am a part of- University of Iowa students. The CDC has plenty of articles on the background of vaccination for influenza, and the University of Iowa student health page has information on getting your shot through the school. There will be enough facts to support my proposal.