The North Georgia Health District is urging folks across the upper end of the Peach State to roll through one of its drive-through flu shot clinics in October.
The clinics, conducted every year since 2008, are the district's effort to reach out, grab people by the arms and vaccinate them, officials said.
Now in its second year, the program has "made it possible for residents to roll in, roll up a sleeve and arm themselves against the flu safely, quickly and conveniently while seated in their vehicles," district spokeswoman Jennifer King said in a news release. The clinics serve people ages 18 and older in Cherokee, Whitfield, Gilmer, Fannin, Pickens and Murray counties.
King said the types of flu vaccine offered at the clinics are the four-in-one quadrivalent flu vaccine and the high-dose vaccine for people 65 and older.
Officials said quadrivalent flu vaccine protects people against four different strains of flu, including two influenza A viruses and two influenza B viruses.
The high-dose flu vaccine is for people 65 years of age and older and contains four times the amount of protective antigen for immune systems that tend to weaken with age, according to health officials.
King said the vaccine "is no-cost for anyone under one of several acceptable health insurance plans such as Medicare, Medicaid, Aetna, BlueCross BlueShield, United Healthcare, and others."
For those without insurance coverage, the cost is still relatively low. Officials said the quadrivalent flu shot is $25 and the high-dose flu shot is $65. Cash will be accepted along with other forms of payment, depending on the county, according to officials.
The drive-through clinics also offer a chance to test district plans "for standing up a temporary Point of Dispensing to rapidly administer medication during a public health crisis," the release states. Participating community partners include local law enforcement, volunteers, businesses and first responders such as the county emergency management agency, emergency medical services and fire department.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, flu vaccination can reduce flu illnesses, doctor visits, and missed days from work and school, and it can prevent flu-related hospitalizations.
As people get vaccinated, they not only protect themselves, but they prevent the spread of the flu to others, including older people, very young children, pregnant women and people with certain health conditions who are more vulnerable to serious flu complications, according to the CDC.
North Georgia health officials said the best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu vaccination, and the most convenient way to get that vaccination in North Georgia is at the nearest public health drive-through flu shot clinic.
CHATTANOOGA REGION LOCATIONS, TIMES AND DATES
Clinics planned in Georgia's Murray and Whitfield counties are set for the first half of October.
* Whitfield County: Oct. 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Dalton Convention Center, 2211 Dug Gap Battle Road, Dalton. Call 706-279-9600 for details.
* Murray County: Oct. 15, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. at Murray County Parks and Recreation Department, 651 Hyden Tyler Road, Chatsworth. Call 706-695-4585 for details.
For more details about the North Georgia Health District's flu shot clinics in Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer and Pickens counties, visit https://bit.ly/2kmDnu5.