More H1N1 vaccine arrives; clinic set for Monday

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buy this photo David Grubbs/Gazete staff
Margie Nafts, director of pharmacy, left and public safety officer Tracy Daniel unload a box of H1N1 vaccine Friday at St. Vincent Healthcare. The flu vaccine came from Riverstone health.

Health officials in Billings announced today that a fourth walk-in H1N1 vaccination clinic will be Monday.

The clinic will be from 1 to 7 p.m. at the Shrine Auditorium, 1125 Broadwater Ave. The Unified Health Command - made up of RiverStone Health, Billings Clinic and St. Vincent Healthcare - will distribute 1,600 doses of the H1N1 vaccine on a first-come, first-served basis.

According to a press release from RiverStone Health, the vaccine will only be given to people meeting certain criteria laid out by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. People eligible to receive doses are pregnant women; people who live with or provide care for infants who are younger than 6 months old; health care and emergency medical staff; kids and young adults between the ages of 6 months and 24 years; and people between the ages of 25 and 64 with chronic medical issues that could increase their risk for flu-related complications.

The priority list was established because of a nationwide shortage of the vaccine.

RiverStone advised that people going to Monday's clinic dress in loose clothing to make it easier to access a place for an injection, be ready to let medical staff members know what kind of vaccines they have received in the past month and, if the person bringing a child for a vaccination is not the legal guardian, have a signed consent form from the child's legal guardian.

In total, Yellowstone County has received 11,000 doses of the H1N1 vaccine. At the previous three vaccination clinics in the Billings area, the line of people waiting often stretched hundreds of people deep, and all of the doses on hand were given out in matter of hours.

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