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City leaders announce school flu vaccination plans
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Baltimore City school students, public and private, will begin receiving H1N1 flu vaccinations during the school day, if their parents approve.
Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon, interim city Health Commissioner Olivia D. Farrow and Baltimore City Public School System CEO Dr. Andrés Alonso today announced the start of a campaign to vaccinate thousands of city school students against the H1N1 influenza.
Children must have a signed consent form to be vaccinated. The campaign began this week in five public schools that educate medically-fragile students ages 3 to 21. Many of these students are at especially high-risk for developing complications from influenza.
“There is a lot of concern in the community about this new virus,” Mayor Dixon said. “Perfectly healthy children are getting very sick very quickly. We must do what is necessary to protect our young people, and the best way to do that is to get them vaccinated as soon as possible.”
Additional school-based clinics will be scheduled based on the number of signed consent forms returned and geographic proximity of schools. Children must be marked present and be healthy on the day vaccination at their school. The vaccination campaign is expected to be complete by December.
Parental consent forms have been sent home with public school students. Parents who want their child to be immunized in school should sign and return the form to their child’s school as soon as possible. Several private schools are also participating and will be sending information home to parents.
School vaccination dates will be announced at least three school days in advance. Dates will also be posted on the city health department website (www.baltimorehealth.org) and the school system’s website, www.bcps.k12.md.us.
Private physicians, federally qualified health centers and many retail outlets also are providing flu shots this fall.
The Baltimore City Health Department will continue to make the H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccines available free of charge to the public at community-based clinics. Information on these clinics can also be found at their website. Residents can also call 443-984-4FLU (4358) during normal business hours for further info.
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