LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Flu season is just a couple of weeks from being in full swing here in Kentucky, so state and local health leaders are trying to get ahead of the virus.
On Monday, the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department started offering flu shots in hopes of stopping the spread before it can start.
Ben Chandler, the President and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said last flu season showed us the virus is not to be taken lightly. Last flu season the U.S. saw 80,000 flu-related deaths, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Three hundred twenty-five of them were in the Commonwealth.
“Despite that, only about half of Kentuckians each year get a flu vaccination. We want to turn that around because that’s really a shame,” said Dr. Kraig Humbaugh, the Lexington-Fayette County Commissioner of Health.
The health department is stocked with flu vaccines and is ready to give them out 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. Monday-Thursday.
Doctors say getting vaccinated is the best way to fight against the flu.
The flu season is unpredictable, but experts in the U.S. look to Australia because our season typically mimics theirs. Australia is coming up on the end of their flu season and the country’s Department of Health is reporting that severity and impact of the flu have been low. Despite that positive outlook, health officials here say that you can never be too careful.
