October means it’s time to think about getting vaccinated for flu season

MASON CITY — As the calendar turns to October, it’s time for people to think about getting vaccinated for the upcoming flu season.

Jeni Stiles with Cerro Gordo County Public Health says respiratory illness season can start as early as this month or it can be later in the year, so we need to be prepared. She says the vaccine is a good way to prevent major complications if you do get influenza. “The flu shot, as we know, doesn’t necessarily prevent someone from getting the flu. What it does is it makes it so if they do get the flu, they aren’t going to get as severely ill as they would if they did not have the vaccine. So hopefully it would keep them out of the hospital and save their life.”

Stiles says CG Public Health is one of the many places you can get a flu shot. “We have flu shot for anyone six months and up. We do have the high dose flu vaccine for those who are 65 and older. If you have insurance, your insurance will pay for it. If you don’t have insurance, we have vaccines for anyone six months and up for free.”

Stiles says you can easily schedule an appointment to get a flu vaccine by heading to their website, cghealth.com, and then head to the “I Want To” drop down menu on the right of the screen.