SACRAMENTO – Seniors and others in high-risk groups should contact their doctor about getting a flu shot now, while others who are at a lower risk of serious complications from the flu should wait until the last week of October, Interim State Health Officer Dr. Howard Backer announced today.
"It is important for those who most need an influenza vaccination to get one early," Backer said. "We’ve ordered more vaccine this year to prepare for the demand."
The California Department of Health Services (CDHS) has ordered 751,020 doses of influenza vaccine for the coming flu season that will be distributed to local health departments for low-income residents. The total does not include vaccine ordered by private physicians, employers and clinics and additional doses by local health departments. Last flu season, CDHS received 622,300 doses of flu vaccine.
State and federal officials are recommending that the following groups of individuals at higher risk for complications from influenza get a flu shot now:
- Adults 65 and older.
- Nursing home residents.
- Children 6-23 months.
- Children and adults 2-64 years with a chronic condition, including asthma, diabetes, heart or lung disease.
- Pregnant women.
- Household contacts of infants younger than 6 months of age.
- Out-of-home caregivers of infants younger than 6 months of age.
- Health care workers.
State and federal officials recommend that the following groups of individuals wait until Oct. 24 or later to get immunized:
- Household contacts of children and adults at higher risk for influenza.
- Healthy people ages 2-64.
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The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed this "tiered" schedule to clarify when various groups should get shots. "Following these guidelines will help ensure that the most at-risk Californians receive vaccinations first," Backer said.
Individuals ages 5 to 49 who are not pregnant and do not have chronic medical conditions are encouraged to obtain FluMist, the nasal spray flu vaccine.
Each year, more than 200,000 people in the United States are hospitalized and 36,000 people die because of the flu. Not only can the flu vaccine protect healthy people, it can prevent influenza from spreading to people at highest risk. This year’s vaccine is designed to protect individuals from A/New Caledonia, A/California and B/Shanghai.
Backer encouraged all Californians to take the following steps to help prevent the spread of flu and other respiratory illnesses:
- Stay home when you are sick to avoid contact with co-workers and friends.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. Properly dispose used tissues.
- Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water or a hand sanitizer to help protect yourself from germs and avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
- Stay healthy by eating healthy foods, drinking plenty of water, exercising, getting plenty of rest and not smoking.
Parents and caregivers should use medicines that contain acetaminophen instead of aspirin to treat flu or cold symptoms or chickenpox in children and teenagers because aspirin contains ingredients that have been linked to a rare disease known as Reye’s syndrome. This disease can lead to coma, brain damage and even death in children and teenagers suffering from the flu, flu-like illnesses or chickenpox.
For information about low- and no-cost flu clinics, consumers should contact their local health departments. For more information about flu, please visit the CDHS Web site at www.dhs.ca.gov.
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