Flu shot supplies look scarce for the season ahead, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.
Doses of the vaccine fall below the demand and millions of Americans may go unprotected. The current distribution of the flu vaccine includes 71 million doses, 55 million of those coming from the Sanofi Adventis company. While 71 million may seem like a big number, it is not nearly enough to meet the need.
“More than 180 million people should get the vaccine, and we have never gotten anywhere close to that,” CDC director Dr. Julie Gerberding said. “We expect that by the end of November we will have distributed more than 81 million doses of vaccine.”
Most people do not realize the impact this virus can have on the health of the vulnerable elderly and immune-deficient populations. Without vaccination, those that contract the contagious respiratory illness could experience mild to severe illness that can lead to death.
“Influenza types A or B viruses cause epidemics of disease almost every winter,” the CDC stated on its Web site. “In the United States, these winter influenza epidemics can cause illness in 10 to 20 percent of people and are associated with an average of 36,000 deaths and 114,000 hospitalizations per year.”
Patients with other respiratory diseases, adults over the age of 50 and children under the age of 2 are all very susceptible to flu-related complications that can lead to hospitalization.
The Mississippi Department of Health in Starkville distributes flu vaccines twice a week for a reduced fee, the department’s receptionist said. However, the health department has no shots to distribute at this time.
“We don’t have any right now, but hopefully we will have some soon,” she said.
Longest Student Health Center is also experiencing a shortage of vaccine doses, pharmacist Shannon Barrett said. CHIRON, the company MSU orders its vaccines from, is not allowed to release its supply of the flu vaccine.
“What we had pre-ordered, we haven’t received,” Barrett said. “We got a very limited amount from the other company, Sanofi.”
Although flu shots are scarce, Barrett said that the supplies of an alternative vaccination called Flu Mist are holding strong. “Flu Mist is a live virus that you squirt into your nose,” Barrett said. “It provides the same coverage as the flu vaccine.”
The problem with Flu Mist, however, is that it is only safe for people between the ages of 5 and 49, those that are not at high risk for complications if the flu is contracted, Barrett said.
While influenza can have a dramatic effect on the elderly and young children, the virus should not be a tremendous worry to students, she said.
“I don’t really remember it ever being such a big scare. Last year we didn’t have any shots at all,” Barrett said. “For this population, even if someone does get the flu they can get the medicine to treat it and be better in a week.”