New York, NY –
Students at 125 elementary schools got the swine flu vaccine this morning in the first phase of the city's drive to make inoculation available to all school-age children. Parents interested in the vaccines need to sign a consent form.
WNYC's Fred Mogul spoke to parents and students at P.S. 157 in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn.
REPORTER: A little more than 100 out of the school's 400 students signed up for the shot. Many of the parents coming in today said they just didn't believe that the vaccine was safe or necessary, no matter what the health authorities were saying. Others said they still hadn't decided and they'd wait to do it or not do it at their private doctor's offices.
Fourth grader Jessica Osorio said she had been a little scared going in, but it wasn't bad at all getting a shot, and now she feels healthier.
Actually, it will take about 10 days for the vaccine to take effect and Jessica and the other kids will need another booster shot in four weeks. For WNYC, I'm Fred Mogul.
Fred Mogul has been covering healthcare and medicine for WNYC since 2002. His beat takes him to hospitals, community clinics, doctors offices, health agencies, public schools and research labs across the metropolitan area. His work has appeared on NPR and in the New York Times, Time magazine and Philadelphia Inquirer, among others.
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