H1N1 has been a cross-country concern for months. However, the panic may soon subside. According to the CDC, H1N1 flu shots will become available to the public on October 15.
The FDA approved the H1N1 vaccine on Tues, Sept. 15, and though the vaccine is still in the process of being manufactured, the CDC says that it will be available within the next four weeks in controlled amounts. There will be a systematic distribution of the vaccine, beginning with priority cases, such as health care workers and pregnant women. Second on the priority list are persons between the ages of six months to 24 years due to the fact that they have no antibodies to fight the virus, and that they are in such close proximity to others.
There is even more good news regarding the vaccine, WMUR reports that scientists have discovered that only one shot will be necessary instead of the anticipated two, and immunization could begin in as soon as 10 days.
Due to the contagiousness of the virus, the CDC and the university are asking students to be especially careful with their health. Although New Hampshire is the only state that has not reported a regional or widespread outbreak, students still need to exercise caution.
It is recommended that, until the vaccine is received, students wash their hands frequently and avoid touching their nose and mouth in order to prevent the spread of the disease. Most importantly, however, is the university’s insistence that if a student believes they have the flu, they should not attend class. Sick students are also being urged to not go to heavily populated areas, like Prospect Dining Hall. In those circumstances, Sodexo can provide meals for sick students that can be delivered to their rooms by friends or roommates.
“Students are at a higher risk because they don’t have any antibodies to fight this flu,” Dean of Students Tim Keefe said in Student Senate on Sunday. “It’s been shown that this flu is even less severe than the regular flu, but it is highly contagious, especially amongst [the student] age group.” It is estimated that 25 to 30 percent of the population will catch some kind of flu, H1N1 or not, by the end of the year. Students are being urged to practice extra caution, as Fox 25 News reported the first H1N1 college related death out of Northeastern University on Sunday night.
Flu vaccines for the regular influenza virus will be available through health services within a week or two, and will be offered for free as in previous years. When it comes time for the H1N1 vaccine to be distributed it will also come free of charge.
The question still remains, where students will receive the shots. “Plymouth State has contacted the CDC and applied to be a distribution point here on campus,” said Dean Keefe. However, should the flu become a pandemic, there are predetermined points of distribution. The Athletic Center is the distribution point for Plymouth and the 12 surrounding towns. “It’s really a question of whether students will have to go to Health Services, or walk down to the PE center.”
There is no set date for the H1N1 shot to be administered here at Plymouth State, as the first cases of the vaccine will go to those first of the priority list. The estimate is for distribution to begin within the month of October.