October 13th, 2009
County runs out of flu vaccine

STAFF REPORT

The Hays County Personal Health Department (PHD) announced that it has exhausted its supply of seasonal flu vaccine and has canceled all of its seasonal flu clinics.

Until further notice, flu vaccine is no longer available at PHD clinics in San Marcos and Kyle.

However, residents who are eligible to take seasonal flu intranasal mist are invited to participate in the PHD’s emergency response exercise, in which intranasal flu mist will be administered to drive-up participants. The flu mist will be available on Oct. 23 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Old Bowie School in the 300 block of Staples Road in San Marcos (enter from Broadway Street off of SH 123) and is free to eligible participants.

The drill is designed to be a drive-through exercise. There is no provision for walk-up vaccinations.

Because the flu mist, which contains a weakened but live vaccine, is approved for only certain segments of the population, persons wanting to participate must meet several requirements.

Participants must be between two and 49 years of age, must not be pregnant, must not have any long-term health problems such as asthma, heart, lung, kidney or liver disease metabolic diseases such as diabetes or blood disorders anemia. Participants also most not have certain muscle or nerve disorders (such as seizure disorders or cerebral palsy) that can lead to breathing or swallowing problems, must not have a weakened immune system (due to cancer treatments or HIV/AIDS, etc.), must not have ever had an allergic reaction to eggs or previous flu vaccine, or developed Guillain-Barre Syndrome.