Burlco to give swine flu shots

Burlington County will give swine flu shots to people in several priority groups during Friday clinics in Westampton, county health department officials said today.

Delays in manufacturing the vaccine have resulted in only a small number of shipments of FluMist - a weakened live-virus vaccine that is approved only for healthy people - arriving in the region. There are even fewer doses of the injectable version, which is made with killed virus and is approved for anyone over six months of age.

Burlington County got 3,000 injection doses last week and used 320 of them at a swine flu clinic for first responders on Friday.

Free clinics at the health department on Pioneer Boulevard in Westampton are now scheduled for county residents in high-priority groups from 2 to 4 p.m. on the following Fridays:

- Oct. 23: pregnant women.

- Nov. 6: children ages 6 months to 5 years; pregnant women; and caregivers of children under 6 months. (Children only must return for a second dose on Friday, Dec. 4.)

- Nov. 13: healthcare workers with direct patient contact; people ages 18 to 24; and adults ages 24 to 65 with underlying medical conditions.

- Nov. 20: all the above.

More clinics will be scheduled as shipments arrive.

County public health coordinator Robert Gogats made a point of asking people who are not members of the priority groups to wait until more vaccine is available.

"This is a long-term campaign that will continue for months until everyone who wants a H1N1 vaccination has received one," Gogats said.

For links to flu vaccine updates throughout the Philadelphia region, go to http://go.philly.com/swineflu