St. Louis County hosts H1N1 vaccination clinics Saturday

St. Louis County health officials announced Wednesday (Nov. 4) that it will have its first free round of H1N1 vaccination clinics for County residents. The free public vaccination clinics will be held at five area high schools on Sat., Nov. 7.

The St. Louis County Health Department received 23,000 doses on Nov. 3 and is expecting another 10,000 doses within the week. Of those received, 10,000 will be divided among the clinics and the rest will be distributed to public and private schools and private physicians who have requested the vaccine.

To date, the department has distributed 43,000 doses.

Health Director Dolores Gunn asked that the clinics be limited to St. Louis County residents only and that there will be a preference for residents falling within the five high priority groups. The Centers for Disease Control has classified the following as high priority:

* Pregnant women
* Children ages 6 months to 4 years
* Caregivers of and those living with infants under 6 months of age
* Children ages 5 to 18 years with chronic health conditions
* Emergency medical service personnel and health care workers

Officials said that more than 1,300 confirmed cases of H1N1 have been reported in St. Louis County to date. Gunn said that the County has an estimated 11,000 pregnant women and that about 30 percent of the County’s almost 1 million people would meet the high priority qualifications.

A mixture of H1N1 shots and FluMist will be available at each site. Line tickets will be handed out on a first come, first serve basis. Those who attend will be screened before receiving a line ticket to ensure they meet the high priority standards.

“We are asking that if you do not fit into the high priority list that you wait until a later time to get vaccinated” Gunn said.

The free public vaccination clinics will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Line tickets will be handed out starting at 7 a.m.

The clinics will be held at the following locations:

* Lafayette High School, 17050 Clayton Road in Wildwood.
* Lindbergh High School, 4900 South Lindbergh Blvd. in St. Louis.
* Maplewood-Richmond Heights High School, 16 Sunnen Dr. in Maplewood.
* Jennings High School, 8850 Cozens Ave. in Jennings.
* Hazelwood West High School, 1 Wildcat Lane in Hazelwood.