WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY | Public takes advantage of free seasonal flu shots

Public takes advantage of free seasonal flu shots

By Elizabeth Donatelli - bio | email

NEW CASTLE, KY (WAVE) - While swine flu has been receiving a lot of headlines this year, the seasonal flu kills tens of thousands every year. That's why health officials from Henry, Shelby, Spencer, and Trimble County joined together Tuesday to offer free shots to the community.

Shirley Bohannon from Shelby County says she dropped her healthcare provider after 15 years in 2006 when her insurance paid only $850 towards a $15,000 bill she incurred for surgery.

The hospital helped out with the balance, but after that, she couldn't afford her monthly insurance premiums.

So Bohannon took advantage of the free shots to try and stay out of the doctor's office this winter. She's not alone. Millions of other Americans are without insurance for one reason or another.

"You make too much to be eligible for anything and you don't make enough to pay your bills," Bohannon said. "I learned a long time ago that you're called 'the person that falls between cracks.'"

Health officials decided to use Tuesday's free shots as an exercise to see how many vaccines they can administer in case of an emergency. Within the first 30 minutes, they administered 250 shots.

"We have learned that we can definitely take care of our communities," said Renee Blair, Director of North Central District Health Department. "As long as we have the vaccine, we can get it done."

The free flu shots were set to end at 2 p.m.

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