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Clinics Screen Patients for Swine Flu Vaccine

Clinics Screen Patients for Swine Flu Vaccine
San Diego health care providers who have received swine flu vaccine are screening patients to decide who can get the inoculations.

San Diego health care providers who have received swine flu vaccine are screening patients to decide who can get the inoculations.

Providers who have begun to administer the H1N1 vaccine are navigating a winding path of restrictions and priorities. The first vaccine shipments came in the form of a flu mist that's made from a live virus. Clinics are restricting its use because the live virus is considered unsafe for certain patients.

Dr. Joe Zwass, a pediatrician with Kaiser Permanente says kids who just got the flu mist for seasonal influenza may also have to wait.

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"For live virus vaccines, if they're not given on the same day, you have to wait 28 days before you can receive another live virus vaccine," said Zwass.

He said live virus inoculations can be ineffective if they're taken too close together. Kaiser Permanente, and the county health department, have begun to receive injectable vaccines. Those shots will be reserved for people in high risk groups.