BATON ROUGE, La. -- Swine flu vaccine is about to become more broadly available in Louisiana, state health officials said Wednesday.
Starting Monday, the H1N1 vaccine will be available to the general public, not just at-risk target groups, the health department said in a news release.
Since October, the vaccine has been available to those deemed at highest risk for complications from swine flu: children ages six months and older, pregnant women, young adults ages 18 to 24, older adults with chronic illnesses and front-line health care workers.
A health department spokesman, Rene Milligan, said Wednesday that some health care providers who have served all their patients within the target groups have already been allowed to vaccinate others. On Monday, all providers will be able to vaccinate members of the general public.
The Department of Health and Hospitals said more than 272,000 doses of 2009 H1N1 flu vaccine have been administered to people across the state.
"Thousands of Louisianians in high-risk groups have already received the vaccine, and it has proven to be very safe and very effective," Dr. Jimmy Guidry, the state health officer, said, encouraging Louisiana residents to get the vaccination.
The department estimates that about 216,000 people statewide have contracted swine flu since it was first discovered in April. There are now 1,913 lab-confirmed cases in the state. The disease has been blamed for 40 Louisiana deaths.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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