Faced with a 700 percent markup for the flu vaccine, Kentucky prison officials have decided to skip the inoculation of some at-risk prisoners in favor of “fiscal responsibility,” reports the Louisville Courier-Journal. The department is seeking less expensive vaccine, said a prison spokeswoman. The attorney general is investigating whether prisons are victims of price gouging. At least four states have sued vaccine distributors for allegedly inflating prices of flu vaccine.
The state has only 400 flu shots for prisons. Those will be given to 145 medical staff and as many of the highest-risk inmates as possible, said Dr. Scott Haas, medical director for the state Department of Corrections. The highest-risk inmates include 190 who are 65 or older, 499 diabetics and 100 who are HIV-positive, Haas said.
Link: http://www.courier-journal.com/localnews/2004/10/28ky/A1-prisonflu1028-6253.html