BOSTON -- The State Department of Public Health announced Monday that Massachusetts will get another 260,000 doses of the flu vaccine by the end of week.
NewsCenter 5's Liz Brunner reported that the state still plans to restrict the vaccine to those at highest risk.Staffers at the flu vaccine hotline are logging hundreds of calls a day trying to help people find those elusive flu shots.
The hotline is designed to take the pressure off doctors, hospitals, and local boards of health, but the situation is constantly changing, and people need to be patient."We're not going to have all the answers so they shouldn't expect every time they call to get exactly the right answer or that they will be sent to the exact right place," Department of Public Health Commissioner Christine Ferguson said.Callers are getting some good news -- the state is getting 262,630 new doses of the flu vaccine this week. That brings up the total to about 1.2 million doses -- more than the Department of Public Health would have in a normal year. But that's the public supply. There's still a shortage among doctors and hospitals, so restrictions on who gets the shot still apply."Those parts of the state who have higher population of older people, those parts of state that may have folks that are more at risk -- that's where we're going to put a little extra vaccine," Ferguson said.Officials said that there's a good chance we'll see even more extra doses in Massachusetts, and it's important to remember it's still very early in the flu season."I'm optimistic. I'm hopeful. This is a week-by-week process. We'll probably still be getting some vaccine in January," Ferguson said.The hotline number is (866) 627-7968.
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Liz Brunner Reports On Vaccine
