flu vaccines

Thinking of looking for a flu shot while you're out shopping this weekend but don't know where to look?

There's an app (Google Maps) for that.

Type in a location and it will show you locations in the area that offer flu shots, as well as their times -- and it will differentiate between seasonal flu and H1N1 vaccines, in case you need one and not the other.

The largest U.S. supplier of seasonal flu vaccines says it's running behind on shipping vaccine for the regular, seasonal flu — partly because of the crunch to produce millions of doses of the swine flu vaccine.

Swiss drugmaker Novartis said Thursday one of its swine flu vaccines may work with just one dose, rather than two as previously expected, a finding that could potentially boost global supplies.

China will soon approve domestically developed swine flu vaccines that manufacturers say can protect people against the virus with only one dose, an encouraging development for health officials racing to prepare for an expected spike in cases this winter.

The swine flu pandemic is spurring makers of seasonal flu vaccines to ship them to the U.S. market well ahead of schedule, and supplies are tightening as distributors and others snap up vaccine vials.

The swine flu might appear to be a business bonanza for makers of flu vaccines, but big profits are far from a sure thing — and production of a vaccine poses some financial risks.

A major obstacle to production in the United States is a reliance on half-century-old technology to make the flu vaccines.