SPRINGFIELD, IL -

“According to state health officials,” said Delgado, “the first 71,000 doses of the H1N1 flu vaccine will be delivered to the Chicago area and the rest of the state as early as Tuesday October 6th in the form of a nasal spray.” 

Delgado pointed out that the initial doses -- 16,000 to Chicago, 57,000 to the rest of the state -- will go to health care workers and emergency personnel such as firefighters. They are among the groups on the federal government's high-priority recipient list because of their crucial occupations, particularly if the H1N1 flu becomes a widespread public menace.

The nasal vaccine has been deemed effective for the age group encompassing most of the health care and emergency workers, but is unsuitable for most people in other at-risk groups urged by health officials to line up for the first round of inoculations.

In all, the federal government is sending out 600,000 doses of the nasal vaccine, the initial salvo in the nation's battle against the pandemic flu that first appeared in April and could strike as many as a third to half of the U.S. population, according to government estimates.

"The nasal spray form of vaccine can only be used on healthy persons from 2 to 49 years old," said Dr. Julie Morita, medical director of the Chicago Department of Public Health, "which makes it a very good vaccine for health care and emergency workers.  The 600,000-dose total is minuscule compared with the 45 million doses expected to be ready by mid-October.”

The priority-list groups considered unsuited for the nasal spray are pregnant women, infants six months to 2 years old, and people 25 to 64 years old with serious underlying medical problems. They are being asked to line up for the flu shots expected in mass quantities around Oct. 15.

The Illinois Department of Public Health oversees the orders and deliveries of all vaccines being distributed to 2,783 provider sites in the state outside of Chicago. The Chicago Department of Public Health oversees the vaccines delivered to 1,045 provider sites.

The Chicago Health Department said in a statement that "everyone in Chicago who wants a H1N1 flu shot will be able to get one within the next 90 days."

“Because of the limited number of doses arriving this week, they will mainly be delivered to hospitals and health care workers,” said Kelly Jakubek, a representative with the Illinois Department of Public Health.

"This is the first, small allotment of many much-larger ones to come in the next few weeks," said Jakubek.