The H1N1 vaccine has been hard to find. In most places across the state, the vaccine has been available on a week-to-week basis.

For those who have tried to get the H1N1 vaccine to no avail, just wait. More doses are on the way.

That’s according to Adam Reviere, who runs the Tennessee Department of Health’s free flu line, which can be reached at 1-877-252-3432.

“There’s a delay with the manufacturing right now,” Reviere said. “That’s why it’s kind of a slow shipping process. They (health care providers) really just started getting the shots last week (Oct. 18-24). They’re getting pretty small batches and they’re going pretty quickly. They should be getting more in almost on a weekly basis.

“Each place should be getting more pretty frequently, to the point where anyone who wants one can get the vaccine.”

The flu line opened a little more than a month ago. It is based out of the Tennessee Poison Center. It receives, on average, 100 calls a day. Normal hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Tennessee Department of Health’s website has a “Flu Shot Locator” available at http://health.state.tn.us. It tracks where flu shots are available in each county. As of Tuesday morning, Nov. 3, there were no H1N1 shots or mists available anywhere in Macon County.

Reviere said the first batch of shots were to vaccinate high-risk groups, which includes children, pregnant women, healthcare workers and those with other health issues, among other high-risk groups.

“They’re the ones who have been affected most by this particular strain of flu,” Reviere said.

Macon County General Hospital, at present, does not have the vaccine. MCGH did receive a shipment of the vaccine, some of which was used to vaccinate hospital staff.

So what’s the hold up on the second batch for everybody else?

“There is a slight delay with these manufacturers,” Reviere said. “Whenever they had some available, they wanted to go ahead and send them out just so high-risk groups could go ahead and start getting vaccinated.

“But they’re just now getting started in the shipping process. Probably more towards the middle of November, places other than health departments — doctor’s offices and pharmacies who did order them — they’ll be getting them as well.”

Reviere said local health departments are the main resource right now. He said there is no cost for vaccinations from local health departments.

Reviere said “media hype” surrounding the H1N1 virus has caused some confusion and produced a bit of hysteria. The “swine flu,” as the H1N1 virus has also been called, isn’t any worse than the seasonal flu.

“It really isn’t as bad as a lot of the media is portraying it to be,” Reviere said.

Reviere said 90 to 95 percent of all flu cases since the spring have been H1N1.

“The seasonal flu really doesn’t start until around December,” Reviere said. “Statistically, it (H1N1) is really no worse in how many people it kills and how serious it is.”

Given the chance to clear up any media-produced hysteria, Reviere offered a couple items.

According to Reviere, misconception No. 1: The vaccine is new and hasn’t been tested. He said there are “a lot of rumors and myths floating around that it’s really unsafe.”

That’s not true, Reviere said.

“The vaccine is created by the manufactures who make the seasonal flu vaccine,” he said. “All they did was changed the virus it’s associated with. It’s really not a new vaccine at all. It’s just a different version of the seasonal flu shot.”

According to Reviere, misconception No. 2: You can get the flu from the vaccine.

“That’s another one that we get a lot of calls about, which is untrue,” Reviere said. “Even though the mist form is a live virus, it’s a weakened virus, so you can’t actually catch the flu from it.

“The shot is an inactive dead virus, but neither of them will cause you to get the flu. Sometimes people have slight side effects from it where they may feel congested or a little bit achy, but they cannot actually catch the flu from the vaccine.”

Reviere said those two misconceptions are the two main questions they receive. Others, he said, are people who are “just very concerned about this shot.”

What about getting vaccinated for H1N1 and the seasonal flu in the same day?

“If you get two shots or a shot and a mist you can get them both on the same day,” Reviere said. “If children were to get the mist for the seasonal vaccine or H1N1, they would need to wait about four weeks in between getting the mist form of whichever other vaccine they were getting.”

The mist form of the H1N1 vaccine is effective for ages 2-49. In terms of effectiveness, there’s no difference between the shot and mist for those in that age group.

“It works just as well,” Reviere said of the mist. “And a lot of people prefer that over getting a shot.”

Pregnant women need the shot instead of the mist, Reviere said.