Acknowledging another frustratingly flawed season for flu vaccine distribution, the nation's top public health official Thursday sought to reassure Americans that vaccine continues to trickle into the marketplace and that it's not too late to get immunized.

Dr. Julie Gerberding of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said the government will stockpile about 800,000 doses to distribute to areas hardest hit by shortages and delivery delays.

"One piece of good news is that this year's flu season has not gotten off to an aggressive start, and we have less flu in the country than at the same time last year," Gerberding said during a briefing for reporters. "That's a good thing, because it gives us time to get the vaccine out there. More vaccine is coming."

Once given the shot, a person is considered protected against certain strains of influenza in about two weeks.

Finding the shot, however, may still be a problem for many people. On Wednesday, Kaiser Permanente announced early closure of all of its flu clinics throughout Northern California. It wrapped up its last clinic at its South Sacramento facility on Thursday, and announced that FluMist - the nasal vaccine approved for healthy people ages 5 through 49 - was still available at some Kaiser facilities.

Last week, Maxim, another large flu shot provider, announced its vaccine stocks were depleted and ended its shot clinics at drug and grocery stores.

An unusually high demand for flu shots and manufacturing troubles plaguing Chiron Corp., one of the country's leading suppliers, are being blamed for this year's troubles. They come a year after the nation's vaccine supply was halved because production problems forced Chiron to halt shipment of its Fluvirin vaccine to the United States.

Gerberding said that 71 million doses already have been distributed this year and that by the end of November, another 10 million should become available.

Gerberding said that in the event that high-risk individuals are left without vaccine, the federal government will distribute a very limited supply to physicians and others in certain areas of the country.

She added that local health officials have been asked to redistribute vaccine in their communities when there are surpluses and shortages.

Dr. Glennah Trochet, Sacramento County health officer, explained that local redistribution efforts are easier said than done.

"I don't know what she would mean by that," Trochet said. "Unless there is a state of emergency (declared), we don't have the authority to require people to do anything. We can ask, and beg and cajole, but we can't order them."

Trochet said the state will allow county health officers to lend vials of vaccine to individual doctors, but that the doctors must reimburse the county for the vaccine.

Although the county has received about 80 percent of its anticipated supplies, she said, none of the clinics that treat indigent adults has received vaccine. Low-cost vaccination clinics for seniors, however, have proceeded as planned.

Asked how the nation can handle a potential avian flu epidemic if it cannot handle adequate distribution of flu vaccine in a typical year, Gerberding said the government is working on many levels to prepare for a pandemic and reduce the annual vaccine availability problems at the same time.

That's no consolation to people like Mary Baumgartner, a medical assistant in Dr. William Dugdale's general practice office in Sacramento. Baumgartner is still waiting for 2,500 doses for their mainly elderly patient base.

"Everybody has been calling me," she said. "Now (the distributor) is telling me we maybe will have it by the end of November. I tell the patients to go ahead and get it anywhere they have it."

About the writer:

• The Bee's Dorsey Griffith can be reached at (916) 321-1089 or dgriffith@sacbee.com.

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