Cerro Gordo County public health director says it’s important to get a flu shot

MASON CITY — The director of the Cerro Gordo County Department of Public Health says if you typically get a flu shot, now is the time to get it.

Brian Hanft says coupled with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the flu season could put a big strain on our local health care systems, so getting a flu shot now will be a big help.  “People can go get them now, it’s not too soon. People can start getting that. Just tick it off, just go out, if they are walking through their local pharmacy, their general store, wherever they are at and they might be offering those flu shots, go ahead and take them up on that.”

The county health department typically offers flu shots each year, but Hanft says they’ll be encouraging people to get them wherever they can.  “There’s a lot of other agencies out there, pharmacies, stores, businesses that provide flu vaccinations and also some pneumonia shots as well. As much as we would like to continue to provide those resources the way we have in the past, we know that without utilizing some of those additional resources we’re just not going to get the job done like we have.”

The flu vaccine is recommended for anyone over the age of six months, and it’s especially important for people with underlying conditions like diabetes, asthma or cancer to get vaccinated this season.