Council Member Simcha Felder and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) are promoting flu and pneumonia vaccinations for seniors and other people who are at risk of getting the flu or pneumonia. DOHMH will be setting up clinics in neighborhoods throughout the city in order to make flu shots as easy and as accessible as possible. Flu shots are free for seniors over the age of 65.

“Flu shots save lives, and that is why I and happy to work with the Department of Health to make flu shots available to everyone in New York,” Felder stated.

According to the DOHMH, the following groups of people are especially susceptible to the flu and should make sure they get their flu shot:
• Adults age 50 and over (especially those over 65);
• All children from age 6 months until their 5th birthday;
• All persons age 6 months and older with chronic medical conditions, including heart disease, pulmonary disorders (including asthma), diabetes, kidney disease, hemoglobinopathies, and compromised immune systems (HIV or immunosuppressive therapy);
• People with conditions that can cause breathing problems (such as cognitive dysfunction, spinal cord injuries, seizure disorders, or other neuromuscular disorders);
• Pregnant women;
• All residents of nursing homes and chronic-care facilities;
• All children and adolescents, age 6 months to 18 years, receiving long-term aspirin therapy;
• Caregivers and household members of infants younger than 6 months (babies can get the flu at this age, but are too young for a flu shot);
• All close contacts of high-risk groups listed above, such as household members and persons providing home care; and
• All health care workers.

Locations of clinics offering flu shots can be obtained by Councilman Felder’s office at 718-853-3828, by calling 311 and asking about flu shots, or by visiting the DOHMH website at www.nyc.gov/health/flu.

“For many people in New York City, the flu can be extremely deadly. In 2005, nearly 3,000 New Yorkers died due to complications from the flu and pneumonia and thousands more were hospitalized. Many of these cases could have been prevented had the victims received a flu shot,” Felder said, “It is important that if you are in one of the groups known to be susceptible to the flu, that you get your flu shot this year. It is also important that if you know someone that is susceptible to the flu, you make sure they get a flu shot this year.”