Linn County Public Health is fully engaged with local planning partners to distribute Novel Influenza A (H1N1) vaccine to the Linn County Community.

Linn County Public Health received 800 doses of live, attenuated (nasal spray) vaccine on Oct 08, 2009. This form of the vaccine is not recommended for some people (such as pregnant women and children with asthma).
This first shipment of vaccine will be given to medical staff that has daily direct patient contact with:
pregnant women, people living with/caring for children under 6 months of age, children 6 months – 4 years, and children 5 – 18 years of age who have chronic medical conditions.

Emergency Medical Services providers with daily direct patient contact will be provided H1N1 vaccine at the public health department as supply dictates. Your service representative may contact Linn County Public Health with questions.

As the inactivated (flu shot) H1N1 vaccine is provided to Linn County Public Health a plan is in place to dispense the vaccine to primary care, pediatric, and obstetrician medical providers serving the populations listed below.

• pregnant women,
• people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months of age,
• health care and emergency medical services personnel with direct patient contact,
• children 6 months through 4 years of age, and
• children 5 through 18 years of age who have chronic medical conditions.

If you meet one of the priority groups listed above and do not have a primary care physician, please contact Linn County Public Health at 319.892.6000.

It is anticipated that eventually Linn County Public Health will have enough vaccine to hold large community clinics. The clinics will be held with evening and Saturday options. The locations of the clinics will communicated through the media and on the Linn County Public Health website.

When sufficient H1N1 vaccine becomes available to Linn County, the latter two priority groups noted above will be expanded to include:

• health care workers and emergency medical service workers
• persons between the ages of 6 months through 24 years of age, and
• people from ages 25 through 64 years who are at higher risk for H1N1 because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.

Although the Linn County H1N1 vaccine dispensing plan involves the efforts of primary care physicians, it is important to note that the providers will receive very small amounts of the vaccine. Flow will continue at a rate your provider can not control. These primary care providers are key to the distribution process and have taken on this responsibility which comes with a tremendous work load. The Linn County community is fortunate to have outstanding medical support. Any frustrations regarding the limited vaccine in the community should be directed to the health department and not to those assisting in the distribution process. Linn County Public Health can not dictate what amounts come to our community. The flow is initiated at the federal, then state levels.

Medical providers will be able to charge a small fee ($14.58) to those without insurance for vaccine administration. There is no charge for the vaccine. Providers are also allowed to bill insurance plans and charge co-pay fees for administration.

For those who can not afford the fee for H1N1 vaccine, Community Health Free Clinic, His Hands Free Clinic, and Linn Community Care, will offer the H1N1 vaccine when available. Linn County Public clinics will also be held at no charge to the recipient.