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There are few seasonal flu shots to be found in the Tri-Cities after an early rush of people wanting to be immunized, health officials said.
But with the start of the regular flu season still about two months away, the message for those clamoring for the shot is, "Be patient."
This is an unusual flu year because of the swine flu pandemic, which threw off the schedule for manufacturing the regular flu vaccine, said Heather Hill, communicable disease program manager for the Benton-Franklin Health District.
Health officials initially thought there would be an ample supply of regular flu vaccine. But once the H1N1 influenza, known as swine flu, became widespread, manufacturers shifted production to the swine flu vaccine, which has a different formula than the regular flu vaccine.
"Since (H1N1) was the virus circulating in the community at the time, we needed to have that vaccine sooner," Hill said. "That is the vaccine companies have right now to ship out."
In the meantime, the swine flu vaccine has been distributed to some doctors and is becoming available for the public after a period when only certain high-risk people could get the shot. Swine flu shots likely won't be available through pharmacies until later in the month, Hill said.
Statewide supplies of swine flu vaccine continue to be in short quantities but distributions are continuing, said officials from the state Department of Health.
About 500,000 doses have arrived in the state, but the first to receive them will be pregnant women, parents and caregivers of children less than 6 months old, health care and emergency service workers, people from 6 months to 24 years and adults with health conditions that put them at risk of flu-related complications.
"The federal government has said there will be enough H1N1 vaccine to meet the demand in weeks to come, but for now supplies still are limited," the state reports on its swine flu website.
What regular flu vaccine companies produced was shipped early, but many doctors, pharmacies and public health departments got less than they expected or asked for.
"We personally had one company cancel an order for 5,000 doses," Hill said. "A second company delivered just a little over half of what was promised."
Couple the supply shortage with an increase in demand this year because of media coverage of swine flu -- even though the seasonal flu vaccine does not protect against swine flu -- and the result is no more vaccine available until manufacturers are able to ship more.
That will likely happen late this month or in early December, Hill said.
Richard Nicholas, pharmacy manager for the Kennewick Safeway, said his store ran out of seasonal flu vaccine at its last flu shot clinic Oct. 23. But he said people continue asking for it and get upset when they hear the store is out.
"They should relax," Nicholas said. "Under normal circumstances we would be administering the flu shot now. ... But we started incredibly early. The seasonal flu does not peak until January or February. They should get it when it becomes available."
The store's pharmacy administered more than 1,300 doses of the flu vaccine before running out. Nicholas said he had planned for about 700, but demand was so high he got doses from other stores.
Donn Moyer, spokesman for the state Department of Health, said about 81 million doses of the seasonal flu vaccine have been administered in the United States so far this fall.
"That is a huge success," he said.
Hill said some of those 81 million people likely are people who might not have gotten the seasonal flu vaccine if flu awareness hadn't been heightened by the H1N1 pandemic.
"It is an interesting phenomena when the news media start talking about flu and flu vaccine, then suddenly people want it," she said. "In any given year, many choose not to (be vaccinated). This year, many chose to get it."
Hill said she's not hopeful that large quantities of seasonal flu vaccine will arrive at the end of November, but people should be patient until health officials know more.
Information will be posted to the health district's website at www.bfhd.wa.gov/flu/index.php and its flu hotline at 460-4358 as both the swine flu and seasonal vaccines become available.
To help the public know more about where the H1N1 vaccine is going, the state has a vaccine "locator map" on its website, www.doh.wa.gov/h1n1/h1n1_getvaccine.htm.
-- Reporter John Trumbo contributed to this report.
-- Michelle Dupler: 582-1543; mdupler@tricityherald.com
