By Rod Rose
Assistant Managing Editor
Boone County — Free flu shots will be available for Boone County employees again this year.
This year’s vaccination offers protection against the H1N1/2009 pandemic strain; an H3N2 strain, and an influenza B strain, said Cindy Murphy, RN, who leads the Boone County Health Department’s nursing and vital records division.
The Boone County Board of Commissioners on Monday unanimously approved the program.
Last year, 118 county workers received the shots, Murphy said. In 2007, the first year the county offered the vaccines, 80 employees received shots, she said.
Murphy said the health department is scheduled flu clinics for the public. One is set for the annual Senior Health and Wellness Expo, Oct. 2 in the Witham Health Services Pavilion at the Boone County 4-H Fairgrounds.
For the public, influenza vaccinations will be $20; pneumonia shots are $45.
A new, stronger flu shot intended only for persons 65 and older will cost $30, Murphy said. The “Fluzone High-Dose” vaccine contains four times the amount of antigen (the “active ingredient”) as a standard shot, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The stronger shot is intended to help the body produce more of the antibodies that protect against flu viruses.
For more of the story, see Thursday’s Lebanon Reporter.
