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 2019 – 2020 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, October 11, from 1 – 4 p.m. at the Allison-Parris County Office Building, Legislative Chambers, located at 11 New Hempstead Road in New City.
• Friday, October 18, from 9 a.m. – 12 noon in the Student Union Building, Room #3217, Rockland Community College, located at 145 College Road in Suffern.
• Thursday, October 24, from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. at the Rockland County Department of Health Family Planning office, located at 14 South Main Street, 2nd floor, in Spring Valley.

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 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 reaction.

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.

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 single best step to protect yourself and your loved ones against the flu. It also is a good time to make sure that you are up-to-date on your other vaccines, which can protect you against diseases such as measles and whooping cough,” said Dr. Ruppert.

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