MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - The Shelby County Health Department is offering free flu vaccinations to anyone older than 6 months on Saturday, October 22, 2011, from 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. at Kiby High School at 4080 Kirby Parkway.
The Department is hoping to protect Memphis-area citizens from the illness.
According to the CDC, influenza is responsible for about 36,000 deaths annually in the U.S. The most vulnerable populations are the very young and the elderly. Everyone six (6) months and older should receive a flu vaccination each year. While everyone should get a flu vaccine each flu season, it’s especially important that certain people get vaccinated either because they are at high risk of having serious flu-related complications or because they live with or care for people at high risk for developing flu-related complications.
Those groups include:
- Pregnant women
- People 50 years of age and older
- People of any age with chronic medical conditions, including asthma and other lung diseases, heart disease, kidney disease and diabetes.
- People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
- People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including:
- Health care workers
- Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu
- Household contacts and caregivers of children less than 6 months of age (these children are too young to be vaccinated)
The flu vaccine is not recommended for some groups of people, including:
- People who have a severe allergy to chicken eggs.
- People who have had a severe reaction to an influenza vaccination in the past.
- Children less than six (6) months of age (influenza vaccine is not approved for this age group)
