If you have one of these health conditions — asthma, arthritis or lupus, diabetes, cancer, HIV/AIDS, and heart or kidney disease — and you develop flu-like symptoms, contact your health care provider or seek medical care.

• Serious complications from the flu include pneumonia, ear and sinus infections, dehydration, or even death.
• If you have a chronic medical condition, during a flu outbreak you should:
  

  Get a written record of the kind of chronic disease(s) you have and the treatment you are receiving. Keep this information with you at all times.

  Prepare a typed or printed list of all medications usually taken and the times of day they are taken. Also include necessary medical supplies or equipment such as syringes, strips, lancets if you have diabetes, or oxygen if you have COPD

  Keep the name, phone number, and office address of your doctor or health care provider with you at all times.

  If you use medications for your condition, continue taking those medications even if you become sick with the flu, unless your doctor or health care provider says otherwise

  Be alert to changes in your breathing, especially if you have heart failure, congestive heart disease or COPD. Promptly report changes to your doctor or health care provider

  Inform family members or close friends of your medical condition.

If you have a chronic medical condition, do the following to prevent from getting sick:

Take time to get vaccinated. Get the Seasonal Flu Vaccine: The seasonal flu vaccine protects against the three most common flu viruses. The Seasonal Flu Vaccine can protect you from getting sick from these three viruses or it can make your illness milder if you get a flu virus that is related to those in the vaccine. Get the H1N1 (Swine) Flu Vaccine: Use our Flu Shot Locator to get vaccinated where you live.

Take everyday preventive actions. Wash your hands often with soap and water. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way. Avoid close contact with sick people.

If you do get the flu:

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze to keep from spreading flu viruses to others. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.

Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.

Stay home if you are sick until at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (100°F or 37.8°C) or signs of a fever (without the use of a fever-reducing medicine, such as Tylenol®). Read detailed information about how long to stay away from others.

Take antiviral drugs if your doctor recommends them. Antiviral drugs may be especially important for people who are sick and have a health condition that places them at greater risk of flu complications. For maximum effectiveness, antiviral drugs should be taken as soon as possible after symptoms begin.

Source: http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/healthconditions/index.html

Related posts:

1. Information to Over 3 Million Disability Applicants Each Year – Medicare Card, Social Security to Provide Helpful Health Care Commissioner of Social Security, today announced the agency is providing helpful health care information and website links to the more than three million individuals who apply each year for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability benefits. The website links take disability applicants to two U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) websites – www.healthfinder.gov where they will find information and tools to help them better understand and cope with their conditions; and www.healthfinder.gov/rxdrug where they may be able to get help paying for prescription drugs....
2. Medicare Helpful Information – The NIMH Annual International Research Conference on the Role of Families in Preventing and Adapting to HIV/AIDS The NIMH Annual International Research Conference on the Role of Families in Preventing and Adapting to HIV/AIDS is a three-day conference addressing the importance...
3. MedicareCard.com Helpful Information and Ideas – Choosing a Credit Card MedicareCard.com Helpful Information and Ideas - Choosing a Credit Card...
4. Medicare, NHLBI to Hold Workshop, Health Consequences of Sickle Cell Trait Scientists from across the nation will gather June 3-4 to discuss what is known about sickle cell trait and the potential health implications related to this genetic blood condition. “Framing the Research Agenda for Sickle Cell Trait” will examine the ethical, legal, social, and public health impacts of the blood condition....
5. Becoming an Involved Health Care Consumer Becoming an Involved Health Care Consumer...
6. Information for Pregnant Women Working in Education Information for Pregnant Women Working in Education, Child Care, and Health Care Settings Concerning 2009 H1N1 Influenza Virus ...
7. Medicare Service – Statutory Dental Exclusions Section 1862 (a)(12) of the Social Security Act states, "where such expenses are for services in connection with the care, treatment, filling, removal, or replacement of teeth or structures directly supporting teeth, except that payment may be made under part A in the case of inpatient hospital services in connection with the provision of such dental services if the individual, because of his underlying medical condition and clinical status or because of the severity of the dental procedure, requires hospitalization in connection with the provision of such services."...
8. Medicare – Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act The Balanced Budget Act of 1997, as amended by the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act (OCESAA) of 1999, called for the development and implementation of a prospective payment system (PPS) for Medicare home health services. The BBA put in place the interim payment system (IPS) until the PPS could be implemented. Effective October 1, 2000, the home health PPS (HH PPS) replaced the IPS for all home health agencies (HHAs). ...
9. MEDICARE – CMS LAUNCHES FIFTH ANNUAL MEDICARE HEALTH CARE PROVIDER SATISFACTION SURVEY The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched the fifth annual health care provider satisfaction survey of the Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) contractors that process and pay more than $370 billion in Medicare claims each year....
10. How to Use Your Medicare Card Show your card whenever you get medical care. This will assure that a claim for payment is sent to Medicare. Make sure to use your exact name and claim number. ...
11. Alert: The Electronic Records Express (ERE) website will be unavailable The Electronic Records Express...
12. Public, Private & Community-Based Health Care Options for Medicare Services Public, Private & Community-Based Health Care Options for Medicare Services...
13. Medicare is a health insurance program – Is this True? Medicare is a health insurance program - Is this True?...
14. Medicare – Occasional Forgetfulness Chances are you’ve walked into a room and forgotten why you went there. And misplaced your keys or eyeglasses at least a few times. Many people worry about these memory lapses. They fear they’re heading toward a serious condition like Alzheimer’s disease, an irreversible brain illness....
15. Medicare and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which delayed the phase-out of the hospice wage index budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF) for FY 2009. Therefore we are posting a revised copy of the FY 2009 wage index (see Downloads section below), which includes a full (unreduced) BNAF. Please also see CR 6418 (Transmittal 1701, dated March 13, 2009 ) (see Downloads section below) for more information on the revision to the FY 2009 wage index....