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Published Wednesday, November 11, 2009 in Local

200 doses of H1N1 vaccine arrive

By Jeff Bishop

The Times-Herald

The Coweta County Health Department has received a new 200-dose shipment of injectable H1N1, or "swine flu," vaccine, but the office at 137 Jackson St. will be closed today for Veterans Day.

"We have received a small amount of injectable H1N1 vaccine," said Alice Jackson, nursing director, Tuesday. "But we are closed for Veterans Day."

Jackson pointed out the health department is no longer "the only game in town," however.

"Several other providers have also received vaccine," Jackson said. "We believe additional vaccine will continue to be distributed to local providers."

According to the state "vaccine locator" at http://health.state.ga.us/, the vaccine is available at many locations now, including CVS, CVS Minute Clinics, Ingles pharmacies, Kmart pharmacies, Kroger pharmacies, Publix pharmacies, Rite Aid, Target, Take Care Health Clinics (Walgreens), Walgreens, Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie pharmacies.

Local clinics that are specifically listed on the Web site as having the H1N1 vaccine in stock are Publix Pharmacy at 100 Glenda Trace, Thomas Crossroads, 770-502-8665; Minute Clinic #7214 at 2305 Highway 34 East, 888-358-7468; Summit Urgent Care and Occupational Medicine at 1755 Highway 34 East, 770-502-2114; Publix Pharmacy 0470 at 370 Bullsboro Drive, 770-502-1142; Primecare Pediatrics at 3229 Highway 34 East, Suite 103, 770-251-5253; and Walgreens Store 09890 at Farmer Industrial Blvd., 770-251-6778. Anyone seeking the vaccine is urged to contact the provider by phone to determine the availability of the H1N1 vaccine, as supplies vary on a day-by-day basis.

At the health department, Jackson said they are "encouraging people to call for an appointment to reduce the waiting time and to facilitate parking, which is often a problem.

"Please note that we are holding all regular clinics and will see walk-in clients, but the wait may be longer," Jackson said. The phone number for the health department is 770-254-7400.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that vaccination efforts should focus initially on people in five target groups whose members are at higher risk for influenza or influenza-related complications.

People should seek the vaccine if they are likely to come in contact with influenza viruses as part of their occupation and could transmit influenza viruses to others in medical care settings, or are close contacts of infants age 6 months or less (who are too young to be vaccinated), the ACIP states.

When vaccine is first available, ACIP recommends that programs and providers administer vaccine to persons in these five target groups:

* Pregnant women.

* People who live with or provide care for infants aged younger than 6 months (e.g., parents, siblings, and daycare providers).

* Health care and emergency medical services personnel.

* People age 6 months to 24 years.

* Persons age 25 to 64 years who have medical conditions that put them at higher risk for influenza-related complications.

These five target groups comprise an estimated 159 million people in the United States, according to the ACIP.