St. Luke's Hospital and Regional Trauma Center will begin public clinics Nov. 14. Johnson said no one, including the healthy, will be sent away. And after Nov. 14, all are welcome at St. Luke's, which received almost all of the 7,000 doses it ordered, said Gilbert. Holding off has its benefits, Gilbert added. The flu season peaks in January and lasts until March.
Flu shots hold illness at bay for about three months.
An early vaccination, say in October, wears away during flu season, she said. Melanie Evans covers health-care issues.