By Roger McKinney

rmckinney@joplinglobe.com

Demand for the swine flu vaccine was highest when the flu was at its peak and vaccine supplies were limited.

Now that the peak of this wave of the H1N1 virus has passed, the vaccine is plentiful and demand is low.

But now is not the time to let down one’s guard, experts say.

“This is still a good window of opportunity to get vaccinated,” said Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, during an H1N1 update on Thursday. “I hope that all who are interested in being vaccinated will be vaccinated.”

Frieden said future waves of the virus cannot be predicted.

“The truth is we don’t know,” he said. “Only time will tell.”



Parents hesitant

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services last week urged local health departments to begin offering the swine flu vaccine to anyone who requests it. Before, limited vaccine supplies forced local health departments to restrict the vaccine to targeted groups.

The Joplin Health Department has been working with the Joplin School District to vaccinate pupils in elementary schools. Stephen Doerr, assistant superintendent, said the vaccine will be provided after Christmas break at the middle schools and the high school. He said parents of 700 schoolchildren returned permission slips authorizing their children to receive the vaccine. Parents of 3,000 other elementary schoolchildren did not.

Doerr said some parents had already had their children vaccinated, but others were concerned.

“We have some parents who are just hesitant because of the newness of this particular vaccine and the uncertainty of any side effects,” Doerr said. “Also, the level of concern there was last spring has probably died down some, and parents don’t see the necessity of getting the vaccine.”

But health officials say this strain of flu can be dangerous for children and young adults.

“By Nov. 14, many times more children or younger adults had been hospitalized or killed than in a usual flu season,” as a result of swine flu, said Frieden, the CDC director.

Of around 50 million cases reported nationwide, around 200,000 cases had required hospitalization, and about 10,000 deaths had been reported, Frieden said. The deaths included around 1,100 children and 7,500 young adults.

He said about 15 percent of the country’s population has been infected, or about one in six people.

Information from the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services states that nearly half of Missouri’s swine flu cases have been reported in children ages 5 to 14, which has contributed to 61 school closings so far this year. Nearly 77 percent of Missouri’s cases have been among people age 24 and younger.

The CDC recommends that children younger than 10 receive two doses of the H1N1 vaccine, four weeks apart. Children younger than 6 months shouldn’t receive the vaccine.

Swine flu vaccinations for Joplin schoolchildren are provided at no cost. Doerr said it’s the school district’s and the city’s effort to try to keep children safe and healthy.



Bad timing

Tony Moehr, Jasper County Health Department administrator, said the timing of the availability of the vaccine hasn’t been ideal.

“We had a peak in (H1N1) flu activity late in October,” Moehr said. “We had a lot of people trying to get the vaccine then. At that point, the supplies were extremely limited.”

He said now that the swine flu has peaked, it’s not on people’s minds. But he warned that past pandemics have come in waves.

“It’s still not too late to get it,” Moehr said of the vaccine. “It’s still beneficial to receive it. At this point, we do have an option to lessen the severity of possible future waves.”

Dan Pekarek, Joplin Health Department director, said he agreed with Moehr’s analysis.

“With the number of H1N1 cases being down, it’s probably also influencing the demand for the vaccine,” Pekarek said.

He said that after schoolchildren are vaccinated, the Joplin Health Department will begin offering more H1N1 vaccine clinics for the general public.

Moehr and Pekarek said the H1N1 vaccine also has been made available to area doctors’ offices and some pharmacies.



Local outlets

One of the pharmacies offering swine flu vaccine is the Walgreens store at 20th and Main streets in Joplin. It is offering the vaccine for $18.99, but the cost is covered for those on Medicare, said store manager Louis Niewald.

He said there is almost no demand for the vaccine. He attributed that to a lack of news on the virus.

“Initially there were a lot of news reports,” Niewald said. “Now there seems to be a lack of exposure in the press.”

QuickMeds Pharmacy, 3201 McClelland Blvd., held its first H1N1 vaccination clinic last week. The vaccine was offered free of charge. QuickMeds is part of Freeman Health System.

“We had a very successful day,” said pharmacy supervisor Kelli Perigo. She said the pharmacy administered nearly 270 injection and nasal spray vaccines in four hours. “We had a wide variety of people from children to older people. People were very appreciative.”

Perigo said the pharmacy was prepared for more. Now, the pharmacy is preparing for a daylong clinic on Thursday.

Though the vaccine is now available to everyone, local health officials recommend that those in high risk groups who haven’t yet been vaccinated get the vaccine. Those priority groups are pregnant women; people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months; health care and ambulance workers; those from age 6 months through 24 years; and adults 25 through 64 with chronic health disorders.

As of Friday, 36 swine flu deaths had been reported in Oklahoma, 22 in Kansas and eight in Missouri, according to state health agencies.





Clinics planned

There are local opportunities to get the swine flu vaccine.

• The Jasper County Health Department will have a clinic from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday at 105 Lincoln St. in Carthage. The H1N1 vaccine is available by appointment. There is no cost. To schedule an appointment, people may call 417-358-3111 or toll-free 877-879-9131.

• QuickMeds Pharmacy, 32nd Street and McClelland Boulevard in Joplin, will provide the H1N1 vaccine from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday. There is no cost, and no appointment is required.

• The Newton County Health Department offers H1N1 vaccinations on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 812 W. Harmony St. in Neosho. To schedule an appointment, people may call 417-451-3743. There is no cost.

• The Cherokee County (Kan.) Health Department is making appointments to administer swine flu vaccine to county residents at 110 E. Walnut St. in Columbus. Day and evening appointments are available by calling 620-429-3087 or toll-free 888-405-5323. The vaccine is free.