The following is some important information about the seasonal flu vaccine and your child:
- When will you get the seasonal flu vaccine?
As of Dec 7, Anchor
Pediatrics has an adequate supply of multidose vials of private payor
injectable seasonal flu vaccine. This will likely be our last shipment of
seasonal flu vaccine for the 2009-2010 season, so if you are interested in
getting your child vaccinated please call one of our three offices for a flu
shot appointment. Please remember that H1N1 (swine flu) and seasonal flu
vaccine SHOTs can be given at any time in relation to one another. The two flu
injections (H1N1 and seasonal) are safe to give on the same day. Anchor
Pediatrics also has received a limited supply of VFC single dose injectable
seasonal flu vaccine and a large supply of VFC seasonal flu mist (expiration
Dec 21, 2009). VFC stands for "vaccines for children." Only children
on medicaid or without insurance, qualify to receive VFC vaccine. We currently
do not plan on receiving any additional PRIVATE PAYOR seasonal flu mist..
- Does it protect against the swine flu? The seasonal flu vaccine does NOT protect your child against the novel H1N1 influenza virus (better known as the swine flu.) We expect the swine flu vaccine will become available later this Fall. For more information about the swine flu, please visit our Swine Flu Q&A page. The swine flu vaccine can be administered simultaneously as the seasonal flu vaccine.
The seasonal flu will offer protection against the three influenza virus strains that scientists feel are most likely to infect the United States population during the 2009-10 flu season. These strains are an A/Brisbane/59/2007 (H1N1)-like virus, an A/Brisbane/10/2007 (H3N2)-like virus, and a B/Brisbane 60/2008-like (Victoria lineage) virus.
- Why should my child receive the seasonal flu vaccine? Isn’t the swine flu vaccine more important? Both vaccines are equally important since all strains of influenza virus are potentially dangerous. In the US, 83 deaths associated with laboratory-confirmed influenza infections occurred among children aged < 18 years during the 2007--08 influenza season These deaths were reported from 33 states (Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin). Among the 83 cases, the mean and median age was 6.4 years and 5.0 years, respectively; seven children were aged < 6 months, 16 were aged 6--23 months, 18 were aged 2--4 years, and 42 were aged 5--17 years. Of the 79 cases for which the influenza virus type was known, 51 were influenza A viruses, 27 were influenza B viruses, and one had co-infection with influenza A and B viruses. Of the 63 cases aged 6 months and older for whom vaccination status was known, 58 (92%) had not been vaccinated against influenza according to the 2007 Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations.
- Who should get the vaccine? The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends seasonal flu vaccine for all children 6 months -18 years of age, but certain groups of children are at particularly high risk for flu complications. These include:
- Children under age 2 have a higher risk of complications and hospitalization due to influenza than older children.
- Children of any age who have an underlying medical condition, such as asthma, diabetes, Down Syndrome, another metabolic disease, chronic kidney disease, or sickle cell disease are at greater risk of complications.
- Does my child need a second flu shot? If your child is under 9 years of age and has never received the flu vaccine or has only received one flu vaccine in a previous flu season, then she needs to get a second flu shot 4 weeks after the first is given. The flu vaccine has been shown to be markedly less effective if a child does not get the second shot.
- What about Intranasal flu vaccine (Flumist)?This is a great option for children who are afraid of needles. It uses a live, weakened form of the influenza virus strains mentioned above. Flumist has no thimerosal. It is approved for use in healthy children 2 years and older. It cannot be used in children with asthma or suppressed immune systems. A child should also not receive flu mist if they live in a household where another person has a severely compromised immune system. Pregnant women cannot receive Flumist.
- Who should not receive the flu vaccine? Anyone with a history of severe egg allergy or those who have a severe reaction to the flu vaccine in the past should NOT receive the influenza vaccine. In addition, the nasal version of the flu vaccine should not be given to children with a history of asthma or recurrent wheezing. Children should not receive the flu vaccine if they have a recent history of fever (< 24 hours) prior to their scheduled flu vaccination. Please call the office to cancel your child’s flu shot appointment should this occur. All versions of the flu vaccine can be safely administered to nursing mothers.
- Can I bring siblings to the flu clinic? If they are established patients of Anchor Pediatrics, we encourage you to schedule siblings of your high risk infant/child as well. If they have never been seen by a Anchor pediatrician we ask that you a) schedule a separate well visit for that child at which time administration of a flu vaccine can be considered or b) call the Collier County health department at 239-252-8595 to schedule a flu shot or c) take your child to one of the many grocery stores, urgent care centers , pharmacies that offer flu clinics (age limits and pricing may vary)
- What if the flu clinic dates don’t work for my schedule? We ask that you call one of our three convenient office locations so that our staff can assist you in scheduling your child for a flu vaccine during our regular business hours.
- What if I don’t have private insurance? For children on Medicaid or self pay insurance, the state offers free flu vaccine (this is called Vaccines for Children or VFC). The VFC shipment of flu vaccine does not usually arrive until October. If you do not want to wait until October for the free VFC vaccine, you can receive flu vaccine from our office at the following rates:
- Injectable flu (flu shot) - $20
- Intranasal flu (flumist) - $45
Payment is Expected at Time of Service
The Collier County Health Dept may receive their VFC shipment before our office does, so we encourage you to call them at 239-252-8595.
PLEASE NOTE: Patients with self pay/ no insurance can receive the VFC vaccine at no charge but there will be an administration fee with a maximum $24 charge. If you have additional questions pertaining to your insurance coverage and the flu vaccine please speak to one of our service representatives at any of our three offices.
More information about the injectable and intranasal versions of the flu vaccine can be obtained by reading their respective Vaccine Information Sheets which can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm We also encourage you to visit the American Academy of Pediatrics (aap.org), Centers for Disease Control (CDC.gov) and World Health Organization (who.org) websites to get the most up to date information about seasonal and swine flu.
Thanks for choosing Anchor Pediatrics as your child’s medical home.