Houstonians line up for H1N1 shot

HOUSTON—People lined up all over the Houston area Wednesday morning to get the swine flu vaccine.

The shot is being offered at 10 clinics all around town, and it’s available on the first-come, first-serve basis.

At some of the clinics, people started lining up as early as 5:30 a.m.

Officials said they won’t turn anyone away, but their asking people to wait if they’re healthy and not in a high-risk group.

They say there will be plenty of vaccinations available for everyone in the coming weeks.

Since the city is targeting high-risk patients with this first batch of shots, officials are asking for pregnant women, school-age children and people with compromised immune systems to get vaccinated now.

There’s no medical documentation necessary, and the vaccine will be free.

The city plans to give out 250 vaccines each day at each clinic. The goal is to use the nasal sprays first for the healthier patients and save the limited number of injectible vaccines for those who are most compromised.

The clinics have extended their hours and will now be open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Those hours will be in effect until the vaccines run out.

Health officials want to underscore that – so far – H1N1 has been a mild to moderate disease with most cases not requiring any medical intervention. The death rate for swine flu, about 1,000 this year, is much lower than that of the seasonal flu, which is expected to be over 70,000.