Published: December 10, 2009 10:44 am      

Flu clinics open to everyone

DANVILLE — Vermilion County Health Department is opening its H1N1 influenza vaccination clinics to the general public.

“We have been waiting for this opportunity to provide H1N1 vaccinations to the general public for some time,” says public health administrator Steve Laker in a press release. “We know there is some pent up demand for vaccinations among the portions of the population not included in the original priority groups, so we are pleased to be able to open our clinics to everyone.”

The Vermilion County Health Department will have an open vaccination clinic for anyone wanting an H1N1 vaccination from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday and 7 a.m. to noon Thursday at its main facility, 200 S. College St.

The health department has given more than 6,000 vaccinations, and all of the health department’s clinics until now were focused on the high priority groups identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Illinois Department of Public Health as being those individuals most at risk to the complications of the H1N1 novel influenza virus, including pregnant women, children, and people under age 64 with underlying health conditions.

“After 12 clinics focused on the priority groups, we feel we have reached a good portion of those targeted, at-risk individuals, so it is certainly time to get the clinics opened up to the rest of the population,” Laker said in the release. “We think it is especially important to get as many people vaccinated right now as possible, while the number of influenza-like illnesses are on the decline.”

According to the CDC, the number of states reporting widespread influenza has declined to 25; nationally, the number of visits to doctors and hospitalizations due to influenza-like illness continues to decline, as do the number of deaths. However, public health officials say they expect to see a third wave of the H1N1 virus to appear sometime after the first of the year.

There is no charge for the H1N1 vaccination by the health department. Physicians and pharmacies are expected to begin offering H1N1 vaccinations soon; they will be able to charge a fee.

Additional clinics at the health department will be announced soon, based on demand for the vaccine. For information, visit its Web site at http://www.vchd.org.