Influenza vaccination clinics in East Jefferson County were thrown into limbo Wednesday with national news of a major vaccine shortage.
The critical situation forced Safeway Pharmacy in Port Townsend to cancel clinics this month.
British regulators on Tuesday unexpectedly shut down a major flu-shot supplier, citing manufacturing problems at the Chiron Corp. plant in England where roughly 46 million doses destined for the United States had been manufactured.
That means only about 54 million flu shots will be available in the United States this year from a competing firm.
Jefferson County Health Department officials are following federal Centers for Disease Control and state Health Department recommendations to only vaccinate “medical risk” groups such as children ages 6 to 23 months and adults 65 and older.
Jefferson General Hospital was still supplied with vaccine and planning seven clinics through early November, Kathy Constantine, Jefferson Healthcare community relations director, said Wednesday.
That was not the case, however, at supermarket pharmacies in Port Townsend and Port Hadlock.
Shot clinics canceled
Safeway Pharmacy in Port Townsend on Wednesday canceled vaccination clinics that were scheduled Oct. 16, 23 and 30 after a vendor canceled its vaccine order.
“We were notified today that it won’t be available,” said Dave O’Connor, pharmacy manager, on Wednesday.
“People are really going to have to be really careful . . . by washing their hands and taking vitamin C.”
