Going to D.C. for H1N1 Vaccinations

Mom Heather in Silver Spring sent the following information to other moms in her area this morning:

"I just want to let everyone know that I had a great experience last night getting the H1N1 shot and mists for my son and nephews. After hearing all the crazy Montgomery County wait stories, I decided to go into D.C. We went to Kelly Miller Middle School in NE and had a great experience. There was parking in the adjacent area, cross guards, no lines, the staff was lovely and kind to the children and they got stickers and candy. I highly recommend going -- you do not have to be a D.C. resident to get vaccinated. They had an ample supple of both the mist and shot. We got there around 5:45 p.m. and we were out by 6:20 p.m. Staff was literally just standing around there was such a small turn out. I would think the weekend clinic coming up may be more crowded, but I just wanted to share our experience."

I just followed up with D.C. spokeswoman Dena Iverson about the information. Here's what she has to say:

D.C. is not checking resident identifications. The county is not encouraging non-residents to come into the city because the District's allocated supply is based on the number of people who live in the city (not the number of people who work there). Turnout has been medium to high, numbering around 200 to 600 people depending on the clinic. Iverson doesn't have numbers of how much spray and injectable supply the city has, but said that the CDC has warned all jurisdictions of a slowdown of availability of injections.

If you decide to head into D.C. for vaccinations, here's D.C's Department of Health listing of where the clinics are. One extra note about the D.C. clinics, they are for kids and pregnant women only. Vaccinations for other priority groups will come later.