After doing immunizations at about 100 schools and offering community events geared toward people at greatest risk, the Polk County Health Department says its clinics are open to anyone who isn’t able to get the H1N1 swine flu vaccine from a private provider.Some private groups, doctors, pharmacies and large employers with medical clinics also have the shots. At least one pharmacy chain, Walgreens, is advertising its availability.

‘Anyone who calls us wanting an appointment, regardless of whether they’re in a priority group or not, can get the vaccine,’ said Daniel Jimenez, the department’s public information officer. ‘Now we’re trying to get it out to the general public.’Despite a couple of recalls, in which some H1N1 doses were safe but not as strong as originally thought, state and local public health officials recommend that people interested in getting vaccinated go ahead and do it. But people who got the vaccine from ≠recalled batches don’t need to get re-vaccinated.

The H1N1 flu has been unpredictable, with a couple of peak periods this year, and there’s no way to know for sure whether it will have another surge later in the winter, health officials said. The regular flu season often doesn’t peak in Florida until February.Polk County has had nine deaths related to H1N1 swine flu, although only eight have been recognized officially. One was a 4-year-old girl who was recovering from the flu. She died of other, unrelated medical issues, but the death is recorded among swine flu fatalities.Five women and three men, ages 31 to 71, are Polk’s other swine-flu-related deaths. One of them, a woman who was 43, lived in Polk for a few months before getting the flu, but her death was recorded in the area considered her home.

All the adults who died in Polk County had medical complications putting them at higher-than-average risk, and none had gotten the H1N1 swine flu shot, said Dr. Daniel Haight, director of the Polk Health Department.Health officials say more than a million Floridians have received swine flu vaccinations.Florida Department of Health spokesman Doc Kokol said everyone should make plans to get shots or the nasal spray vaccine.

Priority groups recommended by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to receive the H1N1 vaccine first include pregnant women, people who live with or take care of infants younger than 6 months old, and health care and emergency medical personnel. Also seen as a priority is anyone between 6 months and 24 years old, and anyone between 25 and 64 years old who has medical conditions that put them at higher risk.

Call 863-519-7510 to make appointments for the vaccine at one of the Polk Health Department’s clinics. The state flu information number is 877-352-3581.