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Older voters in pick cities and towns on Election Day will have the chance to cast their ballots and fight the flu at the very same time. Flu vaccine clinics will be stationed next to polling sites in 26 communities across the nation on November 7 as portion of the “Vote and Vax” initiative, a public well being program designed to make it easier for those 50 years and older to protect themselves during the flu season.

The program is supported by a $320,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted to improving the wellness and health care of all Americans. Launched in 1996, the Vote and Vax initiative targets communities across the country in which flu shot delivery rates are usually low. The U.S. Centers for Illness Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that all Americans ages 50 and more than get annual flu shots to aid limit the spread of the influenza virus. Elderly people are especially vulnerable towards the disease, which kills more than 32,000 individuals over age 65 every year, making it amongst the most prevalent killers of older Americans.

“Influenza is one of the deadliest wintertime diseases and yet is also one of the most effortlessly preventable,” says Jane Isaacs Lowe, Ph.D., senior program officer with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “The Vote and Vax initiative is actually a creative and successful way to supply flu shots and other crucial public health services for the members of our society who require them most.”

The Vote and Vax program is directed by Sickness Prevention Achieved through Regional Collaboration (SPARC), a Connecticut-based community wellness program. Since the program’s inception, SPARC has expanded the number of participating sites in the course of each successive election cycle. On this Election Day, the program will operate sites in 26 U.S. cities in 17 states, the largest effort to date.

“This is a simple, convenient way for older adults to get their flu shots,” says Dr. Douglas Shenson, president of SPARC. “You don’t have to vote to get vaccinated, but for a lot of Americans, the convenience of casting a ballot and protecting yourself from the flu at the identical time is an attractive option.”

Those wishing to receive a flu shot at Vote and Vax clinics can pay on-site or by showing a valid Medicare, Medicaid, or private health insurance card along with legal identification. In addition to flu shots, sites could also be in a position to offer vaccines against other common diseases, including pneumonia, hepatitis, and tetanus.

For details about which cities will host Vote and Vax clinics, see the list below. For far more data, contact Evan Burness or Laurie Hawkins.

Public Health Offices:

* Clinica Sierra Vista Grand Forks CA

* Central Coast VNA and Hospice Monterey CA

* San Francisco Department of Public Health San Francisco CA

* Garfield County Public Wellness Rifle CO

* VNA of Southeastern Connecticut Waterford CT

* Jefferson & Madison County Well being Departments Monticello Madison FL

* Polk County Wellness Department Bartow FL

* Lowndes County Board of Health Valdosta GA

* Louisa County Public Health Wapello IA

* Community Wellness Center Partners of Sioux County Orange City IA

* Southwest District Well being Caldwell ID

* Central District Well being Department Boise ID

* Clay County Wellness Department Flora IL

* Whiteside County Health Department Rock Falls IL

* Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Cass Lake MN

* Saline County Health Department Marshall MO

* Monroe County Health Department Paris MO

* Lewis & Clark City-County Well being Department Helena MT

* Cherokee Indian Hospital Public Health Cherokee NC

* Grand Forks Public Wellness Department Grand Forks ND

* Omaha Tribe of Nebraska Carl T. Curtis Health Education Center. Macy NE

* Erie Center on Health & Aging Erie PA

* Bethlehem Wellness Bureau Bethlehem PA

* Galveston County Health District La Marque TX

* City of Houston Dept of Well being & Human Services Houston TX

* Tooele County Well being Department Tooele UT

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The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and wellness care issues facing our country. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the well being and well being care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and obtain comprehensive, meaningful and timely alter. For a lot more than 30 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, as well as a rigorous, balanced approach towards the troubles that affect the wellness and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need to have, the Foundation expects to make a distinction in your lifetime. For far more details, visit http://www.rwjf.org/.

SPARC (Sickness Prevention Achieved by means of Regional Collaboration), is a nonprofit agency committed to creating new approaches to delivering preventive medical services. The organization is focused on broadening access to immunizations, cancer screening, and also the prevention of heart disease and stroke. SPARC was founded in 1995, beginning its activities in a 4-county region in southern New England. The organization’s projects have made a significant impact on the delivery of preventive services within the region, and SPARC has garnered awards from national, state, and neighborhood public health organizations. The agency is supported through partnerships with medical care systems, the Centers for Illness Control and Prevention (CDC), along with neighborhood, regional, and national philanthropies, including The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Contact: Evan Burness
Burness Communications