All of which means the vaccine remains scarce even as the U.S. flu season began this week. Parkland Memorial Hospital received its first, limited supplies Monday and has been carefully choosing who gets a dose. So far, said infection control coordinator Deborah Phillips, this has included patients with lung diseases or diabetes, and nurses who provide intensive care for premature infants. Suppliers, too, are frustrated by the shortage of vaccine. Officials at the largest U.S. producer of flu vaccine, Aventis Pasteur in Pennsylvania, say they are churning out vials around the clock and filling requests in the order they came in.
Every customer has high-risk patients.
Drugstores say they vaccinate more high-risk patients than doctors' offices. Many doctors disagree. It will usually be the people who are younger and more mobile. Health officials predict that there will eventually be enough vaccine for everyone but that some vaccinations will have to wait until December. Usually flu season doesn't hit Texas in earnest until January, so even a late vaccination will protect most people.