Flu season is here in all its runny-nose, dry-cough glory. But Healthy for Life has your back.
Today the program will hold a flu shot clinic for faculty, staff and students as well as their spouses and dependents who are enrolled in a UM health insurance plan.
Free flu shots from 8 a.m. to noon will be given at the Hearnes Center, said Blaine Snow, program manager for Healthy for Life, the T.E. Atkins UM Wellness Program.
Participants must be at least 12 years old.
Please arrive with your Coventry insurance card and completed flu vaccine form, downloadable at wellness.umsystem.edu.
For those not enrolled in a UM health insurance plan, the cost is $15. Healthy for Life accepts cash or check.
Participants do not need to make appointments for the flu shot clinic.
Who should get a flu shot?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that certain people get vaccinated either because they are at high risk of having serious flu-related complications, or because they live with or care for people who are at high risk for developing flu-related complications. This group includes:
• Pregnant women.
• Children younger than five years old, but especially children younger than two years old.
• People 50 years old or more.
• People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions such as diabetes or heart disease .
• People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.
• People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including health care workers and caregivers.
Some people should not be vaccinated without first consulting a physician. They include:
• People who have a severe allergy to chicken eggs.
• Children younger than six months.