Another delay expected in shipments of flu vaccine

By Emily Richmond

Friday, Aug. 17, 2001 | 11:03 a.m.

Clark County health officials are bracing for the coming flu season and an expected delay in the shipments of vaccines.

This is the second consecutive year that the administering of flu shots nationwide has been delayed. The problem can be attributed, at least in part, to production problems involving the three largest manufacturers of the vaccines, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Last year's shortage was coupled with confusion across the country over how the available doses were distributed. Some hospitals reported running out entirely and being unable to vaccinate at-risk patients, while neighborhood pharmacies and supermarkets were able to hand out free shots just a few blocks away.

In past years the number of vaccines available at hospitals and pharmacies depended on the supplier, said UMC spokesman Rick Plummer. If the supplier was short vaccines, the hospital and pharmacy would be short as well, Plummer said. Meanwhile, a private doctor's office with a different supplier might have plenty of shots available, Plummer said.

This year the CDC has taken steps to ensure that hospitals have enough vaccines for at-risk patients, which will likely mean fewer flu shot promotions at neighborhood stores, Plummer said.

"This year should be a little more organized," Plummer said.

UMC plans to follow the CDC's recommendations for rationing the flu shots, giving them first to people older than 65 or patients with other illnesses, Plummer said. UMC is expecting the first half of a 7,000-dose shipment in late September, followed by a second shipment in late October.

The Clark County Health District normally orders about 40,000 doses and also offers the shots first to members of the "at-risk" population, said spokeswoman Jennifer Sizemore.