Parents upset in district's handling of H1N1 death

If someone in your child's school died of the H1N1 virus, you'd probably want to know about it, b...  More »

If someone in your child's school died of the H1N1 virus, you'd probably want to know about it, but some parents at Emerson Elementary School in Albuquerque say that APS isn't being up front about an 11-year-old boy's death. They say they got a letter, but a big piece of information was missing. Parent Amoree Trujillo said Monday, "It just says that he passed away. It doesn't say give any reasoning as to what's going on in with our children." The principal at Emerson Elementary sent home the letter with students on Monday, saying an 11-year-old boy died on Sunday. It says the boy was sick and had been hospitalized since October 11. "We came to find out that he had H1N1 and the school is not telling us.. they're keeping it a secret," Trujillo said. Trujillo's children go to Emerson, and she's worried they will get the H1N1 virus, too. "They bring it home, I've got a four month old baby that they can't get vaccinated," she said. After learning the child died of H1N1, Trujillo called the administration. She said, "They told me that they legally are not bound to tell us that it was H1N1.. they have no legal obligation to do so." On Monday afternoon, APS Superintendent Winston Brooks sent us a statement, acknowledging it was an H1N1 death. In part, it said: It's difficult to cope with death, and even harder to understand when the loss involves such a young person. APS adds that it's the department of health's job to confirm when someone dies of H1N1. Trujillo still thinks the letter to parents wasn't up front. "Why not be honest with the parents? We have a right to know," she said. APS adds that it decided to disclose what school the child attended, which it was not required to do. Health officials say the boy who died had a pre-existing medical condition.  « Less