Department of Health & Senior Services H1N1 Hot-Line:  The number, 1-877-FLU-4141

(1-877-358-4141), will be answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  H1N1 Flu InfoLine specialists will answer questions about flu symptoms, when to seek medical care, and the new H1N1 flu vaccine, now available at locations throughout the state.  Medical professionals will be available to assist with the calls.

Madison County H1N1 Vaccine Availability

Information Update:

The medical providers in Madison County met Friday, October 23 to discuss ongoing concerns regarding the current H1N1 Influenza (Swine Flu).  The Madison County providers are the physicians of Beyer Medical Group, Dr. McGraw, Madison Medical Center Rural Health Clinic and the Madison County Health Department.

Madison County has received (as of October 23) 300 doses of the Live, Attenuated H1N1 Influenza Vaccine  (The Nasal Spray)  and 200 doses of the Injectable H1N1 Influenza Vaccine.  The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines for administering the vaccine based on the recommended priority groups is challenging with the number of doses we will receive weekly. 

Madison County potential doses need by Priority Groups based on population data is:

Priority 1:

Essential Medical Workers and First Responders:  483 doses

Children 6 months to 18 years of age:  2,956 doses

Primary Care Givers of infants less than 6 months of age: 152 doses

School, Head Start and Day Care Centers Personnel:  352 doses

Pregnant Women:  150 doses (these doses are being allocated to the county births occur)

Priority 2:

Continuity of Government:  166 doses

Ages 18-64 years:  6,202

Priority 3:

65 years of age and older:  2,032 doses

We have vaccinated the Essential Medical Workers and First Responders who chose to receive the vaccine and are expanding the target group to children 2 years of age through high school.   The Live, Attenuated H1N1 Influenza Vaccine, (The Nasal Spray) is preservative (thimerasol) free and can be administered to children 2 years of age and older.

To vaccinate as many children as possible, we are having a public clinic on Saturday, October 31, 2009.  Children 2 years of age through high school who attend a Madison County school or live in Madison County are the priority group at this clinic.  The clinic will be held at the Madison County Health Department, beginning at 10:00 a.m.  The vaccinations will be provided on a first come first served basis.  Parents are asked to bring the consent form with them to the clinic which was sent home with your child through their school or day care center.  If you did not receive the information, consent forms will be available at the clinic.

At the clinic parents will be able to talk with medical providers before their child is vaccinated.  The medical provider will evaluate your child's health condition to assure they can receive the nasal mist.

Some children cannot receive the nasal spray.  This includes children who have asthma, diabetes or an autoimmune deficiency.  These children will need to be vaccinated with the injectable H1N1 vaccine when it is available. 

Some children will not be able to receive the nasal spray on this date.  If your child is ill on Saturday or taking an antibiotic for upper respiratory infection, including ear infections, strep throat, bronchitis, or sinus infection will not be able to be vaccinated on Saturday, but can be vaccinated when they are off the antibiotics or are no longer sick.  If your child is taking an antibiotic and you are unsure about whether they should take the nasal mist, contact your family doctor for their recommendation.

With the small number of doses we are also asking parents to not bring their children who have tested positive for Influenza A over that past two months.  When more vaccine is available, we will provide vaccine for these children at a later time. 

All children 6 months through age 9 years will need a second dose of the H1N1 Influenza Vaccine at least 21-28 days from the first dose.  All other age groups will only need one immunization.

It is projected that all citizens will have the opportunity to be vaccinated by the middle of January 2010. 

Prevention and staying home when you are ill are the most effective measures.  The local physicians recommend that if you or a family member has Influenza A or are symptomatic, that you and your household members stay home for at least 7 days and fever free without fever reducing medicine for at least 24 hours.  If you become ill, you have been contagious 24 hours before you began to feel sick.  Though this recommendation is aggressive and difficult on families and our school districts, we have seen smaller numbers of influenza cases than the surrounding counties.  The goal is to limit the spread of the disease until we can offer vaccine to all of the priority groups. 

Schools and Day Care Centers have been a key partner in the reduction of diseases.  The facilities have had increased monitoring of children's hand washing since the beginning of the school years.  The facilities have also increased their sanitation practices within the school buildings and the school buses.  The extra "mile" the schools and day care centers have gone are helping control the spread of the influenza virus. 

By covering our coughs and sneezes and discarding tissues immediately and proper hand washing you can reduce the spread of diseases including H1N1 influenza. 

State health department issues exemption for flu vaccine on October 22, 2009.

Action gives pregnant women and families of young children access to H1N1 vaccine

Missouri's top public health official granted an exemption Thursday to allow pregnant women and parents of children less than three years old to choose whether to receive flu vaccine containing a mercury-based preservative.

Margaret Donnelly, director of the Department of Health and Senior Services, determined that a shortage of preservative-free vaccine was preventing pregnant women and young children from obtaining the new H1N1 vaccine.

Donnelly's action temporarily sets aside a statute that prohibited pregnant women and children under three from receiving vaccine with this preservative.

The statute also allows the health director to set aside the ban in certain circumstances, including a pandemic or a shortage of vaccine. The waiver will remain in effect until the shortage no longer exists.

"The H1N1 flu is now widespread throughout Missouri," Donnelly said. "We know that pregnant women and young children are the most susceptible to this illness. But delays in vaccine production have created a situation where the most vulnerable people were left without vaccine protection."

Donnelly urged women and the parents of young children to consult their health care provider to determine whether any vaccine is appropriate for them.

Under the exemption, pregnant women and families of children younger than three years old will be able to decide whether to receive vaccines that contain small traces of mercury-based preservative.

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