With local pharmacies and medical clinics in Snohomish County now beginning their annual flu shot campaigns, public health officials are urging parents to consider the vaccine for just about all kids 18 and under.
It’s the first time the shot has been ever been recommended for such a wide range of children, from infants to college-aged teens.
“I strongly encourage everyone to get vaccinated … but particularly those six months to 18 years of age,” said Dr. Gary Goldbaum, health officer for the Snohomish Health District.
Goldbaum said he understands that parents may be concerned because kids already get a lot of shots.
Youngsters often play a big factor in spreading the flu, he said. Kids who are in close contact with each other in school and day care settings become infected and bring the virus home, exposing siblings and parents to the bug.
“That’s how it’s spread in our community,” Goldbaum said.
It can be tough for parents to see their child undergo the pain of a shot, acknowledged Dr. Carolyn Sherman, a pediatrician at Providence Physicians Group.
But influenza can be a devastating illness in babies, she said, which sometimes requires them to be hospitalized.
“What we’re trying to prevent is much more pain and agony than one shot,” she said.
Last year, health officials recommended the shot for children 6 months to 4 years old. The recommendation for children 5 to 18 to be immunized is new this year.
Sherman and other doctors said they expect they’ll have to keep reminding parents of the change.
Flu vaccine for both adults and children is expected to be in abundant supply this year, in contrast to recent years when shortages had people jamming clinics and lining up to get the shot.
Nationally, an estimated 140 million doses of vaccine are expected to be available.
The state Department of Health, which distributes the childhood vaccine throughout Washington, has ordered 435,000 doses this year, up from the 355,000 doses it ordered last year, said Lonnie Malone, health educator.
More doses were ordered because of the recommendation for more kids to get the shot this year, she said.
This year, the cost of the shot is generally expected to range between $25 and $30.
The Snohomish Health District began offering the shots to adults and kids on Oct. 1.
Grace McMurray, 73, of Everett said she began calling the public health agency in late September to see when the shot would be available. She was able to get the shot the second day it was offered.
“I know so many people who get the flu and are miserable from it,” she said.
Stephen Smith and his wife, Katherine, of Snohomish went to the health district’s Everett office to see what shots they would need for an upcoming trip to South America.
When he saw a brochure on the availability of the flu shot, it got added to the list, Stephen Smith said.
They both have mothers in nursing homes. “We don’t want to infect them” or get the infection while visiting the nursing homes, Stephen Smith said.
The Everett Clinic is preparing to give the shot to as many as 29,000 patients this year beginning on Oct. 13.
Doctors in Snohomish County are beginning to see viruses that cause vomiting and diarrhea, but they haven’t yet seen any cases of the flu, said Dr. Yuan-Po Tu, who tracks influenza issues at The Everett Clinic.
Influenza’s symptoms include fever, severe muscle aches, coughing, a sore throat and a runny nose.
Although the shot is optional for healthy adults between the ages of 19 and 50, “if I was a college student living in a dorm, I would get one,” Tu said. “If you’re out for a week at college, you’ll have a tough time catching up.”
The nonprofit Community Health Center of Snohomish County has ordered about 3,000 adult and pediatric doses, spokeswoman LuAnne Kay said. The shot will be available for its patients beginning Oct. 20 for $15.
Reporter Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com.
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