By Valerie Bauman, Associated Press Writer
A few New Yorkers will have access to the state’s first batch of swine flu vaccinate this week, but most will have to wait as the supply trickles in.
The first doses arrived this week, with the Nassau and Suffolk County health departments receiving the nasal spray form of the vaccine on Monday.
More batches will be arriving around the state, with a total of 91,000 doses expected to be delivered to counties outside of New York City by the end of the week.
The first people vaccinated will be those the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers at high risk. That includes health care workers, pregnant women, children and young adults and people between ages 25 and 64 who have health conditions that could lead to medical complications. The mist vaccine is not recommended for pregnant women or people with underlying health conditions.
Later, the state will have vaccine that is injected. New York has about 10 million people who fit the priority groups, according to the state Health Department.
County health departments serving 100,000 people or less will receive only 200 doses this week. More populated regions will get more — health departments with more than 500,000 people will get 1,000 doses this week, as will hospitals with more than 286 beds.
The CDC expects about 3.5 million additional doses to be available nationwide this week, with 10 million to 15 million doses of vaccine available each week thereafter until the end of October.
New York officials expect the state to get 6.7 million doses for upstate and 5 million doses for the city by January.
On the Net: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/vaccine(underscore)safety(underscore)qa.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/gbs(underscore)qa.htm
http://www.preventinfluenza.org/ivats/
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.