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RI seasonal flu vaccine supply for adults to fall short

3:06 PM Tue, Oct 20, 2009 | Permalink
Felice Freyer

Rhode Island will not get as much seasonal flu vaccine for adults as it ordered, and some flu clinics will be canceled as a result. Even so, more adults will be able to get flu shots this year than last year.

And while there will be plenty of seasonal flu vaccine for children, some shipments will be delayed until December -- still well before the flu's peak in February and March.

The swine flu pandemic has raised awareness of flu vaccines, increasing demand, Health Director David R. Gifford said at a press briefing Tuesday. Meanwhile, manufacturers who failed to produce the expected number of seasonal flu doses have turned their attention to swine flu vaccine.

As a result, some adults who want a seasonal flu vaccine may not be able to get it.

The state ordered 298,000 doses of seasonal flu vaccine for adults, but expects to receive only 253,000 doses. Already 80 percent have been delivered. Last year, 240,000 adults received the seasonal flu vaccine.

For children, the state originally ordered 140,000 doses of seasonal flu vaccine, and two-thirds of them have arrived. The rest -- plus an additional 14,000 ordered to meet the growing demand -- have been delayed until December.

Meanwhile, on the swine flu front, the first injectible vaccine is expected Wednesday and Thursday. Those 3,000 doses are targeted for pregnant women, who can start getting it from their obstetricians next week.

Nearly 15,000 doses of nasal-spray vaccine against swine flu have been distributed to pediatricians for certain children age 2 to 5. Injectible vaccine for children is expected in the next couple of weeks, but the swine flu vaccine shipments have been sporadic and unpredictable.

"That has continued to frustrate us," Gifford said. "It's coming in dribs and drabs."