Plenty More H1N1 Vaccines to Come, Mayor Says

About 20,000 more doses of the H1N1 vaccine are available and will be distributed soon, Scotch Plains Mayor Nancy Malool said this week.

Malool announced at the recent township council meeting that the health department has projected that the next clinic will likely be held on Monday, Nov. 23, in the late afternoon. A location has yet to be determined.

The township's first H1N1 clinic, held this past Sunday at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, served 2,200 people. While the clinic was intended to serve those who were most at-risk, "nobody was turned away," Malool said, adding that the lines were long but the entire process was orderly overall.

Police officers, EMS workers, municipal employees and PTA members were among those who volunteered at the clinic.

A separate clinic for first responders was held on Thursday, Nov. 5, from 3:30 to 7 p.m. in the municipal building.

Malool said the next scheduled clinic will be able to serve even more residents.

"Anyone who still wants the vaccine can get it," she said.

The first H1N1 clinic for Fanwoodians was held this past Tuesday at Westfield High School. More than 1,251 people were vaccinated there.

"To give that many vaccines in over an hour is phenomenal," health officer Megan Avallone said an hour into the clinic when 750 people had moved through the line. "It's going extremely well."

The clinic featured nasal versions of the vaccine, which is a live version of the virus. The next clinic for Fanwoodians and others served by the Westfield Regional Health Department will offer an inactivated version of the vaccine in the form of a shot. It will be held next Monday, Nov. 16, from 5 to 8 p.m. at Summit High School.

Fellow Patch editor John Celock contributed to this report.