Saturday H1N1 Vaccination Blitz Locations Announced

By Chris Wright, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- The Oklahoma State Department of Health will host an H1N1 "vaccination blitz" this weekend. Thousands of doses will be administered at 27 locations across the state.

The Exchange Center at the Tulsa County Fairgrounds is one of those sites where people will receive free inoculations Saturday. But the vaccine will still not be available to everyone.

After some initial worries, health officials say the demand for the H1N1 vaccine is steadily on the rise, as evidenced by the crowd that showed up at a Tulsa Community College Clinic last week.

"Our community continues to see an increase in supply, optimistic that very soon it will begin to catch up with demand," said Melanie Christian, Tulsa Health Department.

Some of that supply will be given out Saturday during a state-wide vaccination blitz. There are still some restrictions though.

Priority groups for the H1N1 vaccine include:

• All children ages 6 months to 18 years
• Pregnant women
• Custodial parents of infants less than 6 months of age
• Front-line health care workers who have direct patient contact with acutely ill persons
• Adults 19 - 64 years of age with chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, asthma & other chronic lung disease, chronic heart disease, cancer, and other conditions that suppress the immune system.

"It's still unfortunately not available to everyone simply because of the supply we have and the demand we have," Christian said.

Saturday will mark the first time the vaccine will be offered to adults with health conditions Big crowds are expected at other sites in Jay, Miami, Muskogee, Okmulgee, Skiatook, Stillwater, Tahlequah, and Vinita.

In Creek County, which is holding its clinic at the County Courthouse, health officials will be using the honor policy.

"If they're coming up telling us they have asthma or having heart problems, we're taking people at their word. We're not requiring any documentation on that or anything," said Ron Koening, Creek County Health Department.

While more doses are arriving, and more people in Oklahoma are now eligible to receive it, there is still no word on exactly when it will made available to the general public.

Health departments have started giving out some doses to local doctors, so officials also recommend checking with your physician.

People seeking vaccinations will be screened to ensure that they meet a priority group definition for H1N1 vaccine and to verify Oklahoma residency.

People not included in one of the priority groups or who are unable to attend a Saturday clinic are encouraged to be patient, as new vaccine shipments arrive in Oklahoma each week. 

The doses offered include both nasal spray and injectable vaccines.

For up-to-date information about Vaccination Blitz locations, call your local county health department or visit www.health.ok.gov, or call the Oklahoma State Department of Health toll-free H1N1 hotline at: 1-866-278-7134.

Phones are answered Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.