Students at 128 New York City elementary schools are getting vaccinated against swine flu. It’s the first phase of the city’s drive to make the vaccine available to all school-age children.

The city’s health commissioner, Dr. Thomas Farley, said there are 40,000 doses set aside for the first wave of schools.

School nurses at those sites will administer the nasal spray vaccine starting Wednesday to students whose parents have signed consent forms. Nurses expect to vaccinate 15 to 25 kids per day, per school.

Officials do not yet know what percentage of parents citywide have signed the forms.

Larger elementary schools will be added next week and then more the week after that, with middle and high school students being handled in weekend clinics that start mid-November. The reason for the staggered schedule is that the city is waiting for more doses of the vaccine, and they just don’t want to run out once they begin.

City health officials are hoping 60 percent of students get the vaccine, but some parents aren’t on board.

Vaccine allocations from the Centers for Disease Control are changing almost daily. Experts say, though, that by January, New York City should have a surplus of dosages.

(Source: WCBSTV)