Kane halts H1N1 shot appointments

The Kane County Health Department no longer is taking appointments for individual H1N1 immunizations because it can't guarantee when it will receive more, officials said Monday.

"We are booked for all the vaccines that we currently have," said Kane County Health Department Executive Director Paul Kuehnert. "We have no additional vaccine in the pipeline at this point, so we're not going to make additional appointments."

Like many surrounding counties, Kane County offered general clinics in October. Kane County officials ran low on vaccines, so they opted for individual appointments.

Appointments were taken through Monday afternoon for dates as far away as Dec. 3, but as soon as officials determined they had all 17,500 doses accounted for, they stopped making appointments.

The county hotline was overwhelmed with calls last week, topping 1,000 per day. Many residents waited days for a return call, if one came at all.

Kuehnert said he had 25 staff members working to call back every person who left a message.

He said Kane County officials hoped to receive more immunizations, and that residents should check the Web site kanehealth.com or call (630) 444-3189 for updates.

When more vaccine arrives, the county likely will distribute some to local private physicians and keep some to distribute to residents by appointment.

"This is a national vaccine shortage," Kuehnert said. "There will be adequate vaccine. We all are just going to have to be patient."