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St. Pete Mayor Gives Public Health A Shot

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By MARY SHEDDEN

mshedden@tampatrib.com

Published: November 22, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG - The first order of business for the city council Friday: a shot in the arm.

Mayor Rick Baker and several council members got flu shots in council chambers and hope local residents heed their example.

"Please don't get caught without the vaccine," said Chairman Jamie Bennett, the first of several officials to get a shot.

Between 12,500 and 50,000 Tampa Bay area residents will get the flu this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The season peaks between October and March, but the flu can be contracted year-round, said Michele Haynes, infection prevention expert at Edward White Hospital, who administered the vaccines.

The local flu figures result partly from the fact that less than half of Floridians get the vaccination, which costs roughly $25 at area clinics, said Jolene Bivens, spokeswoman for the American Lung Association.

She said an estimated 36,000 Americans die from complications related to influenza each year. About 226,000 people are hospitalized from the virus, which infects the lungs and spreads easily from person to person.

The CDC recommends that 250 million Americans, or four out of every five, get an annual flu shot. People older than 50, the chronically ill, pregnant women and children older than 6 months are especially at risk.
Senior citizens tend to get the vaccine, Bivens said, but other groups do not. That includes people age 6 months to 2 years and 18 to 49.

Want to get vaccinated? Call 1-800-586-4872 or visit www.facesofinfluenza.org or www.flucliniclocator.org.

Reporter Mary Shedden can be reached at (813) 259-7365.

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