Most Who Want Swine Flu Shot Can't Get It

Nov. 7 -- FRIDAY, Nov. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Although the total doses of H1N1 swine flu vaccine available in the United States now tops 38 million -- 11 million more than a week ago -- most Americans who want a shot still haven't been able to get one, U.S. health officials acknowledged Friday.

In fact, 70 percent of adults and 66 percent of children who tried to get vaccinated couldn't, according to a poll conducted last weekend by researchers at Harvard University School of Public Health.

"I think it was understandable that people were finding it difficult for people to find vaccine at the time of the poll, because we were and still are at a point where the supply is relatively limited, compared with the demand," Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said during a news conference Friday.

One positive finding of the Harvard poll was that nine out of 10 people said they would try again to get vaccinated, she noted. "They weren't giving up. They weren't so frustrated that they had had it. They recognized the value of protecting themselves with vaccine, and sticking with it through the next several weeks."

Schuchat noted the vaccine supply would continue to increase and next week an additional 8 million doses are expected. However, she was cautious in making any predictions about vaccine supply beyond next week.

"I am expecting in the next several weeks things will get better and better," she said. "But, we have all been burned on predictions, so I am not going to get more specific than that."

As demand for both H1N1 swine flu vaccine and the seasonal flu vaccine has reached unprecedented levels, the H1N1 strain continues to circulate and is widespread in 48 states.

More people are being hospitalized and confirmed deaths from swine flu among children have reached 129, according to the CDC. Of these children, two-thirds had underlying medical conditions such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and asthma, Schuchat said.