New Jersey Can Now Get Flu Vaccine at Home
If you’ve ever gotten the flu, then you’re aware of how awful an experience it is. Influenza is a serious illness that can easily lead to a hospital visit or…
CHICAGO – OCTOBER 06: Doses of H1N1 influenza vaccine sit in a basket.
(Photo Illustration by Scott Olson/Getty Images)If you’ve ever gotten the flu, then you’re aware of how awful an experience it is. Influenza is a serious illness that can easily lead to a hospital visit or death. This is especially true in high-risk patients like the elderly and young kids.
A trip to the doctor’s office could also be an unpleasant, costly experience. You have to load the kids in the car, sit and wait forever (“There’s no chance of not waiting, that’s the name of the room” – Jerry Seinfeld) in a waiting room filled with several sick people. If you’re not sick already, you may be.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization recommend that everyone get a flu vaccine.
At-Home Flu Vaccine Now Available
The good news is that it has just gotten easier to get protection from the flu. AstraZeneca just launched its home delivery option for FluMist. FluMist is a nasal spray flu vaccine that you can use to help prevent the flu without a trip to wherever you get your flu shot.
FluMist has been available for more than twenty years, and, until now, you could only get at a drug store or by visiting your doctor.
They just started enabling you to order it online and show up in your mailbox.
Joris Silon is the country president and senior vice president of AstraZeneca and said, “FluMist Home is bringing a simple and accessible option directly into the hands of consumers.”
The FDA approved FluMist for self and caregiver use last year. Research shows that it’s a safe and effective way to get the flu vaccine. It’s approved for kids 2 to 17 years old and adults 18 to 49 years old.
Officials are hoping that an at-home and needleless option will help increase the number of people getting the flu vaccine.
The CDC says that last year, we had the highest number, over 250, of flu-related deaths for children since 2009.
Health experts insist that getting the vaccine is the best protection against influenza.
The AstraZeneca website says, “Individuals 18 and older can visit FluMist.com to learn more and order.”
