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60 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, May 4, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend January 7, 2005 Now anyone can get flu vaccine By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Now you can get a flu shot whether you’re old or young or somewhere in between. All you have to do is find the vaccine. Oregon public health officials lifted restrictions Tuesday on who may have a flu shot. Vaccine has been rationed since early October, but demand has fallen short of supplies, said Dr. Grant Higginson, state public health officer. Higginson said public health officials decided to lift the restrictions to make sure that all available vaccine would be used. Flu vaccine is made fresh every year for new mutations of the flu virus, so it’s most effective if used during the year it was produced. Higginson said flu season in Oregon typically does not peak until February, which means that getting a flu shot now still provides protection against influenza. Advertisement Normally, it takes two weeks from the time of inoculation for a vaccine to become effective. "We’ve been fortunate that, so far, the flu season has been mild," Higginson said in a media release. "Of course, we can’t predict how this year will play out, so this is an opportunity for those who wanted to get vaccinated before to do so now." Health-care providers are now free to give flu shots to the general population, but there is little vaccine available in Jackson County. "We may not have 50 doses," said Hank Collins, director of Jackson County Health and Human Services. Community Health Center has "extremely limited" supplies of vaccine at its clinics in Ashland and White City, said Peg Crowley, director. Flu vaccine is also available at Wellness 2000 in Medford, according to the Oregon flu hotline at 800-978-3040. The vaccine has been rationed since early October after production problems caused more than 60 million doses to be destroyed for fear of contamination. The remaining vaccine was initially given only to seniors, people with chronic health problems, infants 6 to 23 months of age, and health care providers. When the vaccine became scarce, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took charge of all available stocks and distributed them to the states, which in turn sent them to county health departments for local distribution. In mid-December restrictions were eased and the flu vaccine became available to people over age 50. Collins said local demand for flu vaccine was limited even when the vaccine became available to 50-year-olds. That prompted him to sell most of Jackson County’s unused vaccine to other counties where supplies could not keep up with demand. "I’ve shipped vaccine to Hermiston, Klamath Falls, and Salem," Collins said. "I sold the last 1,200 doses to Portland." Higginson said it appears that only about half of high-risk persons received their shots so far. Those individuals still have the greatest need for protection, and he encouraged them to seek vaccination immediately. He noted that Oregon still has access to about 30,000 doses of flu vaccine from the CDC but they will need to be ordered soon. Collins said it was unlikely he would ask for more vaccine for Jackson County because demand has been light. "I think a lot of people just decided to go without (a flu shot)," he said. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail [email protected] To schedule a flu shot, call Community Health Center in Ashland at 482-9741, or in White City at 826-5853, or Wellness 2000 in Medford at 776-9167. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg diamonds Distance Education Diamonds Online Poker Auto Insurance Slippers Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation teleconferencing Website Design & Marketing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Mortgage Calculator Free Home-Loan Referrals Advertisement s