After much ballyhoo, vaccinations against the swine flu become available this week. But don't try to make that appointment just yet.
This week's initial shipments to states are so small that, with a few exceptions for children, most states are reserving them for health workers so they'll stay healthy enough to care for the flu-stricken and vaccinate others.
The idea is to keep the health care providers healthy so they can deal with the rest of us.
Full inoculations won't gear up until mid-month, when at least 40 million doses to fight the H1N1 flu will have rolled out, with more arriving each week after that.
Only then can you can queue up for your swine flu shot.
This is uncharted territory — you really can't plan too far ahead to say, "I'll schedule my shot on Oct. 16 at Clinic X." Only as shipments start arriving will local doctors, clinics, school vaccination programs and drugstores get word that their doses are coming and how much. Each state health department decides that.
People will have to stay tuned.
"Take a deep breath, be patient, wait a couple of days, make another phone call and cut everyone a little slack, because it's a little hectic out there, folks," says Dr. William Schaffner, a flu vaccine specialist at Vanderbilt University.
