No Shortage Of Flu Vaccine Despite Pharmacies Running Out: City

NEW YORK, NY — New York City has plenty of flu vaccines ready as the virus continues to sicken people at a record-setting pace, city and state health officials say. There's no local, statewide of national vaccine shortage even though some pharmacies may run out of flu shots, the city and state health departments said.

Officials have encouraged New Yorkers to get vaccinated at the height of what the Centers for Disease Control has called the most active flu season since 2009. More than 6,800 people in the state have been hospitalized with influenza since the season started in October, including more than 1,700 in the week ending Jan. 20, according to state Department of Health data.

The state health department acknowledged that there can be "localized spot shortages," such as when pharmacies run out of vaccines and are waiting on a new shipment. A dozen pharmacies in Manhattan and Westchester County told CBS2 on Thursday that they'd exhausted their vaccine supplies and weren't sure when they would get more.

But that doesn't mean there's a broader shortage, the city and state health departments said. Drug manufacturers have shipped more than 152.1 million doses of the vaccine as of Jan. 12, the state Department of Health said.

"The Department of Health is working to ensure that New York continues to have an adequate supply of flu vaccine and remains in close communication with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) regarding vaccine availability," the state health department said in a statement.

Two of the city's hospital chains reported having plenty of flu vaccines. Northwell Health, which runs four hospitals and dozens of doctors' offices in the city, is not seeing a shortage, spokesman Jason Molinet said.

NYC Health + Hospitals, which oversees about 50 city-run hospitals and health care centers, has flu shots "available health system-wide," spokesman Bob de Luna said.

"We remind New Yorkers that there is still value in getting vaccinated," de Luna said in an email. "It is not too late to benefit!"

Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order last week allowing pharmacists to vaccinate kids as young as 2 to improve access to the vaccine. The flu has killed 37 children across the country so far this season, according to CDC data.

The flu vaccine's effectiveness has fluctuated in recent years, CDC figures show. Last year's vaccine was 39 percent effective, lower than the 48 percent effective rate from the 2016 season before but better than the 19 percent rate in 2015.

Manufacturers have to pick which strains of the virus to include months in advance to make sure the drugs are produced and delivered in time for flu season, meaning results can vary from year to year, according to the CDC's website.

There are still plenty of places around the city to get vaccinated even if the nearest pharmacy is out of flu shots, a city Department of Health spokesman said. The city has an online map of locations where the vaccine is offered. New Yorkers can also text "flu" to 877877 to get help finding a flu shot.

(Lead image: A pharmacist gives a flu shot in California on Jan. 22. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)