In Platte City and Riverside
It’s flu shot season.
The Platte County Health Department is gearing up for flu season and will once again offer the public some convenient flu shot opportunities.
“We urge our residents more than ever to get a flu shot this year to decrease the likelihood of being stricken with both COVID-19 and influenza at the same time,” Dan Luebbert, deputy director for the health department, told The Landmark this week.
The health department will offer a drive-thru flu shot clinic at the Riverside fire department, 2990 NW Vivion Road, on Thursday, Oct. 8 from 3-7 p.m. and in Platte City at the Platte City Middle School, 900 Pirate Drive, on Monday, Oct. 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The shots at the drive-thru clinics are offered at no charge and are for Platte County residents age nine and above. At each location, shots will be given while supplies last.
Last year the health department budgeted for 250 doses at each of the two drive-thru clinics.
At a recent meeting, the Platte County Health Department Board of Trustees approved a blanket allotment of 700 free doses to be administered at off-site events. It was not immediately made clear how the 700 free doses will be divided among multiple off-site opportunities the health department will have scheduled.
In addition to the drive-thru clinics, other opportunities for free shots will include health department events to be scheduled at places such as food pantries, in schools, and at the annual Day of Hope event, which assists families in need for the holidays.
Three different variations of a flu shot dosage are offered this year, health officials said. Those include Flulaval Quadrivalent for age six months and above; Flublock Quadrivalent Adult for age 50 and above; and Fluzone Senior High Dose for age 65 and above.
Local officials have indicated they expect a higher demand for flu shots this year, with likely more folks wanting a flu vaccination in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Health officials in the region are somewhat apprehensive about the upcoming flu season in combination with the current COVID-19 pandemic. Mary Jo Vernon, director of the Platte County Health Department, said last week that state officials and officials in the hospital system are concerned about the upcoming flu season, as many hospitals are already running at a high volume of patients. She said the high volume in hospitals is not necessarily related to COVID-19 but rather with patients playing catch-up for surgeries and procedures that were delayed earlier this year during the early portion of the pandemic.