HEALTH DEPARTMENT SCHEDULES FLU VACCINE CLINICS

For anyone 6 months and older, at several locations in Rockland

NEW CITY, NY - - Rockland County Executive Ed Day and County Health Commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert announce that the Health Department has scheduled flu vaccine clinics for the 2018 – 2019 flu season.

The Health Department is offering the vaccine to anyone 6 months and older. Clinics will be at the following times and locations:

• Friday, September 14, from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm at the Robert Yeager Health Center, Building A, second floor clinic area, located at Sanatorium Road in Pomona.
• Friday, September 21, from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm at the Robert Yeager Health Center, Building A, second floor clinic area, located at Sanatorium Road in Pomona.
• Wednesday, September 26, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Konbit Neg Lakay, located at 16 East Church Street in Spring Valley
• Friday, September 28, from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm in the Student Union Building, Room #3217, Rockland Community College, located at 145 College Road in Suffern
• Friday, October 5, from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm at the Allison-Parris County Office Building, located at 11 New Hempstead Road in New City
• Wednesday, October 10, from 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm at Centro de Amigos, located at 91 Broadway in Haverstraw
• Friday, October 19, from 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm at the Robert Yeager Health Center, Building A, second floor clinic area, located at Sanatorium Road in Pomona.
• Friday, November 2, from 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm at the Robert Yeager Health Center, Building A, second floor clinic area, located at Sanatorium Road in Pomona.

The vaccine is free of charge if you:

• are 65 years and older (please bring identification with proof of age)
• have Medicare or Medicaid (please bring your card)
• are uninsured or underinsured

No appointments are needed. There is a $20 fee (down from $25 last year) for those 6 months through 64 years old. Cash or checks will be accepted. For those with private health insurance, we will provide you with a receipt to submit to your health insurance for possible reimbursement.

The Health Department is giving the quadrivalent flu vaccine which does not contain preservatives, including thimerosal. The vaccine is called quadrivalent because it offers protection against four different flu virus strains that research shows will be most common during this flu season: two influenza (flu) A virus strains and two influenza B virus strains. It is recommended that you wait for 15 minutes after being vaccinated so you can be observed for any reactions.

Everyone 6 months of age and older should get the flu vaccine as soon as it becomes available each year. It's better to get vaccinated early in the fall, before the flu season really gets under way since it takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against the flu virus. In the meantime, you are still at risk for getting the flu. The protection you get from the flu vaccine will last throughout the flu season. Talk to your doctor before getting the flu shot if you have an allergy to eggs or any of the ingredients in the vaccine, or if you are not feeling well (talk to your doctor about your symptoms).

The flu is a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and sometimes even death. Even healthy people can get very sick from the flu and spread it to others. "Getting the flu vaccine is the main way to prevent the flu and its complications," said Dr. Ruppert.

For more information about the flu and the flu vaccine clinics visit http://bit.ly/2c154Bj or call 364-2534.