The Brownwood/Brown County Health Department began sending out consent forms this week for schools to immunize their students against the H1N1 Virus at no cost. This program has been developed to help stop the spread of the new H1N1 influenza virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has recommended that children and young adults aged 6 months through 24 years be vaccinated against 2009 H1N1 as soon as the vaccine is available because studies of the initial cases showed that children and young adults were found to be more susceptible to this new flu virus.
Consent forms must be turned in by the deadline mentioned in letter sent to parents/guardians for students to benefit from this program. This form allows parents to either accept or refuse the vaccination for their child. A screening questionnaire is also provided to make sure the student is able to get the type of vaccine offered. Allergies to eggs, previous flu vaccinations, vaccines received within the last 30 days, medications the child may be taking, compromised immune systems and several diseases a child may suffer from are a few of the concerns on the questionnaire.
Schools will notify parents/guardians of the exact date that the Health Department will be coming for the H1N1 vaccination clinic. Once vaccinated, vaccination information on students will be entered into IMMTRAC, the Texas Immunization Registry. Students were sent home with brochures about IMMTRAC. For more information, parents can visit the CDC’s 2009 H1N1 influenza web site at www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu , www.texasflu.org/ or call your family’s health care provider with any questions you may have.
