BUSINESS: FLU VACCINES DISTRIBUTED TODAY

About 630 doses of the flu vaccine will be available on a first-come-first-served basis at the Cape Girardeau County Health Department today, director Charlotte Craig said.

The doses were delivered to the Health Department Thursday afternoon by a local hospital. Craig said they are a pay-back from earlier this fall when she distributed some of her original order to various hospitals as part of her emergency disaster plan.

"I gave each hospital about 600 doses, and some of theirs has come in," Craig said. "They're paying me back, so I can give 630 people flu shots."

The Health Department will begin giving shots at 9 a.m. today.

Although Craig said no one will be turned away Friday, she does ask that people who, medically, can stand to wait for the vaccine -- those who are younger and healthier -- consider waiting for a later round.

"It will be first come, first served, but if they feel like they could wait, that would be great," Craig said. "But if they prefer to go ahead and have their flu shot, that's OK too. I won't say no to anybody."

Meanwhile, local private practice doctors continue to play a waiting game with vaccine deliveries.

Spokespeople at three area clinics -- Physicians Assistants in Cape Girardeau, the Jackson Medical Clinic and the Southeast Missouri Health Network in Sikeston -- said they are still waiting for vaccine deliveries and have no idea when they may show up.

Brenda Shadron, a spokesperson for the Ferguson Medical Group in Sikeston, said the clinic has received about half of its original order.

"We only have enough to give to high-risk patients," she said. "The companies are telling us that we should have all that we ordered by the end of December."

Both Shadron and a spokesperson at the Perryville Family Care Clinic said their doctors and employees at have not received the vaccine yet.

The Perryville Family Care Clinic does not provide the flu vaccine to patients but directs them to the Perry County Health Department.

Judy Laurentius, administrator at the Perry County Health Department said, said she has not received any flu vaccine yet.

"I believe what they promised us is partial shipments, but we haven't seen any yet," Laurentius said. "What we get is going to the nursing homes and home patients first, but until it gets in the door we don't know."