{"id":206813,"date":"2018-04-19T16:19:59","date_gmt":"2018-04-19T06:19:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=206813"},"modified":"2020-08-05T10:55:52","modified_gmt":"2020-08-05T00:55:52","slug":"free-flu-shots-now-available","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2018\/04\/19\/free-flu-shots-now-available\/","title":{"rendered":"Free Flu Shots Now Available"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Health authorities are urging Queenslanders to get a shot ahead of this year’s flu season (Photo: Wikimedia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

April 19, 2018<\/strong><\/p>\n

Free flu shots are now available for community members most at risk of getting sick during this year\u2019s flu season.<\/p>\n

The vaccines are provided under the Federal Government\u2019s National Immunisation Program.<\/p>\n

Those who are eligible for a free flu shot include people aged 65 years and over, most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and those who suffer from chronic conditions.<\/p>\n

Federal Member for Wide Bay Llew O’Brien said 2017 had the highest influenza activity in Australia for almost a decade, with more than 250,000 Australians testing positive for the flu and double the normal hospitalisations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI urge everyone in our community to consider getting a flu shot this year. Annual influenza vaccination is recommended for any person six months of age and older, with vaccines also available through private medical services,” Mr O’Brien said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to get the flu shot every year, as the virus changes year to year.”<\/p>\n

Health Minister Greg Hunt said flu shots were available now at GPs and other vaccination providers. <\/strong><\/p>\n

They can also be bought at many pharmacies.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year over 90 per cent of the 1100 influenza-associated deaths were in people aged 65 years and older and this year we have taken specific action to address this,\u201d Minister Hunt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo new ground-breaking flu vaccines are now available for Australians aged over 65. These are specifically targeted at this age group, offering stronger doses and now available for the first time in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting vaccinated from mid-April will ensure you are protected before Australia\u2019s peak flu period, from around June to September.\u201d<\/p>\n

The composition of the Australian vaccine is decided by the Australian Influenza Vaccine Committee in consultation with the World Health Organization.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Free flu shots are now available for community members most at risk of getting sick during this year\u2019s flu season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":187029,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[172,3],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nFree Flu Shots Now Available - www.southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Free flu shots are now available for community members most at risk of getting sick during this year\u2019s flu season.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2018\/04\/19\/free-flu-shots-now-available\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Free Flu Shots Now Available - www.southburnett.com.au\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Free flu shots are now available for community members most at risk of getting sick during this year\u2019s flu season.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2018\/04\/19\/free-flu-shots-now-available\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"southburnett.com.au\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-04-19T06:19:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-08-05T00:55:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/flushot.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"620\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"385\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Anne Miller\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Anne Miller\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2018\/04\/19\/free-flu-shots-now-available\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2018\/04\/19\/free-flu-shots-now-available\/\",\"name\":\"Free Flu Shots Now Available - 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