Drugstores to start giving flu shots On Sept 1st
Drugstore operators are beginning their seasonal flu shot campaigns several weeks early this year, saying they expect greater demand for the vaccine in a year when the swine flu strain has dominated the news.
CVS Caremark Corp. and Walgreen Co. are making flu shots available starting Tuesday, while Rite Aid Corp. said some of its pharmacists are already giving the shots. The vaccine is intended to prevent the seasonal flu and is separate from vaccines for swine flu. A swine flu vaccine could be ready by mid-October.
CVS said it was offering the shots three or four weeks earlier than usual. Walgreen said it started giving flu shots Oct. 1 last year.
CVS and Walgreen each run about 6,900 stores around the country, while Rite Aid has about 4,800. Walgreen said the shots will be available at almost all of its stores and about 350 of its Take Care retail clinics, and CVS said it will give the shots at scheduled events in many of its stores and at all 500 of its walk-in Minute Clinics. Pharmacists at about 1,500 Rite Aid stores will be able to give the vaccination.
Walgreen pharmacies and clinics will have an immunizing pharmacist on duty daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Sept. 8 to Sept. 30. Starting Sept. 15, CVS said it will hold more than 9,000 "flu shot clinic events" at its stores, where pharmacists or other health care workers will give the injections. Rite Aid, which is based in Camp Hill, Pa., will run clinics at more than 1,800 of its stores starting Sept. 23.
本报讯 虽然H1N1在北美似乎鲜有人注意，但是美国有关卫生机构仍然紧张进行今年秋季流感的预防。新的(H1N1)A型流一再广泛被报导，也增加了对疫苗的需求和民众对疫苗的兴趣。今年，美国各地药房提早几个星期开始为民众注射季节性流感疫苗。
CVS和Walgreen药房都在9月1日展开流感疫苗注射，Rite Aid也表示，它的一些药剂师已经在提供这种注射。目前的疫苗是用于预防季节性流感，而对付A型流感的疫苗可能到10月中旬才会上市。
Walgreen说，它旗下几乎所有药房和大约350家Take Care诊所，都提供疫苗注射。CVS旗下许多药房和500家Minute Clinics诊所，将举行预先安排的活动提供注射。Rite Aid大约1500家药房将由药剂师提供注射。从9月8日到30日，每天上午10时到下午4时，Walgreen药房和诊所将有提供预防注射的药剂师当班。CVS从9月15日开始，将举办9000场流感注射活动。Rite Aid从9月23日开始，将在1800多家药房设立预防注射诊所。
CVS和Rite Aid都将在网站公布诊所作业时间，CVS也将向失业者免费提供10万剂季节性流感疫苗注射。Walgreen将为没有健康保险的人提供价值100万元的疫苗，并出动九辆巴士到全国各地一些选定地点分发免费注射疫苗的凭证。
联邦疾病防治中心建议儿童、老年人、医护人员、孕妇、免疫系统有问题或患有各种慢性病的人，接受流感疫苗注射。
另外，据报道，许多创新的疫苗试验正在展开，因为政府准备秋天给民众大规模地注射A流感疫苗。
目前试验结果主要将决定一系列问题，如对鸡蛋过敏的人是否能注射疫苗？能否能同时注射季节流感疫苗和A流感疫苗？又是否注射A流感疫苗时还须注射加强药力的辅药？
疫苗生产商无法且不愿意做这种复杂研究，所以政府将会为此提供资助。疫苗生产商将做些基本试验，让管理机构和疫苗接受者相信疫苗是安全的，并能提供针对A流感类病毒的保护。
加拿大正在计划试验对鸡蛋过敏的人能否注射用鸡蛋生产的流感疫苗，目前这种方法被认为是不安全的。 随着一些生产商用细胞培养来生产疫苗，可能未来问题会少一些。但目前用鸡蛋生产疫苗仍占全球疫苗的大部分，而加拿大的全部疫苗都是用鸡蛋生产的。
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