Community Corner

Community Notice: H1N1 Flu Vaccine Status Report

A message from the Darien Health Department concerning the status of H1N1 flu vaccine; note expanded priority groups.

We have been receiving many calls from people wanting to know when H1N1 vaccine will be available. There has been considerable media attention given to this flu so public concerns are high. Unfortunately, there are only very limited amounts of vaccine available at this time and as a result, the State and Federal Government have established a priority list for individuals eligible to receive the vaccine until supplies are more plentiful. It is important to realize that this is a national situation; it is not localized to Connecticut or Darien. Every section of the country is facing the same difficulty.

FluMist nasal spray is available in limited amounts but its use is restricted to:

  • Healthy children age two through 24 years *NEW
  • Healthy household contacts and caregivers of infants less than 6 months old
  • Healthy hospital healthcare workers and EMS personnel


Injectable vaccine is less available than the nasal spray and its use is restricted to:

  • Pregnant women
  • Household contacts and caregivers of infants less than six-months-old
  • All children aged six months through six years *NEW
  • Children age five through 24 years with high risk medical conditions *NEW
  • Hospital healthcare workers and EMS personnel who have direct contact with patients or infectious materials *NEW


Darien has ordered but not received sufficient amounts of vaccine to hold open clinics as yet. The very limited amount of vaccine we have received is already committed to those in the categories described above with strong emphasis being placed on vaccinating children with pre-existing high risk medical conditions such as asthma and pregnant women.

Find out what's happening in Darienwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

If you or a family member is in the above priority group, call this office at 203-656-7320. We are compiling a list and will contact you when we can schedule your appointment for a vaccine.

Once the target population (see above) has been served, the next level of priority will be school-aged children. We have ongoing planning sessions with the Darien School Superintendent about organizing clinics in schools. Unfortunately, it would be premature to schedule those clinics without knowing when vaccine will be available.

Find out what's happening in Darienwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

OPEN CLINICS WILL NOT BE HELD UNTIL VACCINE IS WIDELY AVAILABLE.

We will provide notification of vaccine availability through www.darienct.gov and other media outlets including Darien Patch.


David Knauf, MPH, MS, RS
Director of Health
203-656-7320

Barrington Bogle, MPH, RS, CHES
Assistant Director of Health


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