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Contact: Cindy Parmenter
Director of Communications
(303) 692-2013 - Office
(303) 891-8382 – Pager |
Lori Maldonado
Public Information Specialist
(303) 692-2028 – Office
(303) 921-8598 – Cell |
For Immediate Release Tuesday, November 23, 2004
ORDERS FOR FLU VACCINE CAN BE SUBMITTED TO HEALTH
DEPARTMENT
DENVER – Colorado clinics, physicians and other
organizations interested in purchasing additional flu vaccine to be used
for groups of at-risk patients should complete an order form on the
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Web site at
http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/cdphehom.asp.
The orders, which should be completed by Tuesday, November
30, will be filled from the 66,455 doses of additional flu vaccine that
have been made available to Colorado. The doses are part of the allocation
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the 7.2 million doses
of currently available vaccine to states throughout the nation.
Dr. Lisa Miller, the director of the department’s Disease
Control and Environmental Epidemiology Division, explained that completing
the order form does not guarantee receipt of vaccine although all orders
will be evaluated and as many as possible filled.
Miller said that a staff member from the division’s Immunization Program
will contact clinics, physicians and other organizations submitting orders
to confirm the information and request.
She also said the minimum available order and the price for
the vaccine will vary by the distributor being used by CDC to distribute
the vaccine. Also, according to Miller, although 95 percent of influenza
doses will be vials, requests for a particular formulation of
preservative-containing vaccine, such as 10 dose vials vs. pre-filled
syringes, cannot be honored.
At-risk groups, as identified by CDC, include:
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All children aged 6-23 months of age.
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Adults 65 years of age and older.
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Persons 2-65 years of age with underlying chronic medical
conditions such as heart disease; lung disease, including asthma;
diabetes; kidney disease; blood disease; or are immune compromised as a
result of infection or medications they are required to take.
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Women who are pregnant during the flu season.
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Residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
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Children 24 months to 18 years of age who are on chronic
aspirin therapy.
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Health-care workers who come into direct contact with
patients.
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Out-of-home caregivers and household contacts of children
under six months of age.
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