By:Jerry Burke
"As of today, we have had to postpone our senior center program," said Town of Hempstead spokeswoman Susan Trenkle of the planned vaccination tour of 14 senior centers in south Nassau. Trenkle said that officials would assess the availability of shots before making any further announcements.
Eugene Scarpato, Lynbrook mayor had to announce the village's cancellation of the flu shot program, originally scheduled for Oct. 22, as well. Many residents who have taken advantage of the program in the last few years were left to scramble for shots. "I'm not happy," said a senior resident who had participated in the program last year, but did not want to give her name. "If I knew I wasn't going to be getting a shot from the village, then I would have made other arrangements." The resident conceded that the village is not at fault, but didn't know where else to direct her anger. "I think people are a little bit troubled," said a worker at the Franklin Square Senior Center, whose Dec. 1 program has been cancelled. "But most people are being patient, trying to work things out and hoping that things will get better soon."
From local church groups to clinics to individual doctors, the availability of the shots is at an all-time low. But, as experts have pointed out, the "panic" has also created a record demand.
What happened?
First, the bad news: Almost half of the nation's flu vaccine will not be delivered this year because Chiron, a major manufacturer of the vaccine, based in Liverpool, England, discovered contamination in its bottling process and, as a result, will be unable to distribute vaccine this season. Chiron was to manufacture 46 million to 48 million doses of vaccine for the U.S.
Now, the good news: There are 58 million doses of the vaccine available, made by the Aventis company, and according to Director of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, about 24 million doses had yet to be distributed as of last week, and will be steered toward the people and places where it is needed the most.
In addition, the government is in the process of securing more vaccine from other countries, including Canada and France. Many of those doses, including 2.6 million more from Aventis, will be available in January, Thompson said.
County on the case
According to Dr. David M. Ackman, commissioner of health for the Nassau County Department of Health, the county is working with a multitude of local health organizations to prioritize the available supply. "Nassau County hospitals, nursing homes and long-term care facilities have been contacted to identify their influenza vaccine needs and status," said Ackman. "Physicians were notified by the Nassau County Medical Society and the Nassau Pediatric Society to provide the Department of Health with the influenza vaccine needs for their high-risk patients."
So far, Nassau County has determined that the 32 Nassau County nursing homes are in need of 6,000 doses of vaccine for their patients and 6,000 doses for their staffs. Nineteen adult-care facilities are in need of 2,000 doses for their patients and 900 doses for staff members, and the 12 hospitals are in need of 10,000 doses for their staffs.
Ackman said that more than 120 county physicians who were surveyed reported that they needed vaccine for 43,000 high-risk patients, but that the annual Nassau County Senior Flu Vaccine Program, which provides vaccine for 15,000 seniors, was canceled due to the lack of vaccine.
An estimated 25 percent of Nassau County's population, roughly 325,000 residents, is considered high risk.
The price of health
Thompson also warned of an increasing number of price-gouging incidents across the country. "We have organized a federal task force that will coordinate our nation's efforts to ensure that the flu vaccine and treatment medication goes to those who need it most, and without any price gouging," he said.
"From the time we learned about our loss of the Chiron vaccine, a strong partnership between federal agencies, the private sector and the public health and law-enforcement communities has helped us rapidly and effectively address the challenges before us," Thompson continued. "It's important that we keep these partnerships strong during flu season, this year and beyond."
The CDC also warned citizens to never buy vaccines over the Internet, because of the proliferation of counterfeit medicines after last year's mini-crisis.
What to do with the flu
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), much can be done to prevent getting the flu. Wash your hands often, and avoid close contact with people who are sick. Also, because your hands may have touched surfaces contaminated with germs, don't touch your eyes, nose or mouth.
Cover your mouth when you sneeze or cough.
If you do get sick, stay home.
The CDC says that anywhere from 5 to 20 percent of the population will contract the flu in any given year. Last year, the vaccine wasn't particularly effective, because it formula did not offer protection against the most common flu strains.
In the end, most experts agree: Don't get the shot if you don't need it, and if you do, don't stand in line for hours waiting for something that might not be there.
Comments about this story? JBurke@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 234.
Fast Flu facts
Who should be vaccinated?
The existing flu vaccine supplies should be given to people who are at greatest risk from serious complications from influenza.
Everyone in this group should seek vaccination:
n People 65 and older
n Children ages 6 months to 23 months
n Adults and children ages 2 and older with chronic lung or heart disorders, including heart disease and asthma
n Women who will be pregnant during the influenza season
n Adults and children ages 2 and older with chronic metabolic diseases (including diabetes), kidney diseases, blood disorders (such as sickle cell anemia), or weakened immune systems, including persons with HIV/AIDS
n Children and teenagers, ages 6 months to 18 years, who take aspirin daily
n Residents of nursing homes and other chronic-care facilities
n Household members and out-of-home caregivers of infants younger than 6 months. (Children younger than 6 months cannot be vaccinated.)
n Health-care workers who provide direct, hands-on care to patients
Who should go
without vaccination?
Healthy people ages 2 to 64 are asked to postpone or skip getting a flu shot this year so that available vaccine can be used to protect those at greater risk of flu complications.
What about the nasal vaccine, FluMist?
FluMist, the nasal-spray flu vaccine, is an option for healthy individuals ages 5 to 49. FluMist is not recommended for health-care workers caring for those with severely compromised immune systems, and must not be given to pregnant women.
What else can you do to prevent the spread of flu?
There are a number of healthy habits that can help prevent the spread of flu.
n Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them.
n Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, and throw the tissue away.
n If you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your sleeve.
n After you cough or sneeze, wash your hands with soap and warm water or an alcohol-based hand cleaner.
n If you get the flu, stay home from work or school. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
What if you are in a high-risk group and your clinic has no vaccine?
Contact the Nassau County Department of Health, at (516) 571-2500, or ask your regular vaccine provider about other options for vaccination.
Health departments across the U.S. are trying to make sure that as many high-risk people as possible will eventually be able to go to either their regular vaccine provider or a flu shot clinic to get the vaccine.
Source: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov)
