Some rural Kansas counties are offering free flu vaccines targeting farm workers amid an ongoing nationwide bird flu outbreak among dairy cattle and poultry.

The falling temperatures also signal the thick fog of flu season. But in rural areas of Kansas, people are less likely to get vaccinated for the flu.

This year, that has health care professionals worried, specifically for those who work with livestock.

“This makes them more susceptible to flu and other potentially serious complications,” said Dr. Lisette Durand, chief veterinary officer for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC is trying to mitigate some of those complications this season by offering 100,000 free flu vaccines to farm workers in 12 states, including Kansas, with the hope of reducing the burden on fragile rural health care systems.

The urgency this year comes on the heels of a global outbreak in H5N1 bird flu among livestock.

Bird flu has been reported among dairy cattle herds in at least a dozen states this year, including in Kansas.

Durand said this spread of disease in agriculture was the main push to offer free vaccines for seasonal influenza.

“Having the flu vaccine will help prevent the likelihood of getting infected with seasonal flu. This way, if a farm worker does get sick with flu-like symptoms, that will help them distinguish seasonal flu from bird flu cases,” Durand said.

While seasonal flu vaccines will not protect against infection from bird flu, they will reduce the risk of infection with seasonal flu and the very rare risk of co-infection with both viruses.

Bird flu can cause infection in people; a handful of cases have been reported this year. The risk of infection with bird flu remains low for the public, and the CDC suggests caution for those working around animals.

Bird flu cases in humans usually come with symptoms similar to seasonal flu, like a cough, fever and sore throat. That can make it difficult for health care professionals in rural areas to distinguish a case of bird flu from seasonal flu.

Durand does not know why rural Kansans are less likely to get their flu shots, but she said the goal is to educate people.

“We are working to target that notion to get out into the community to ensure that they have the information that they need … to help bridge that gap of knowledge,” Durand said.

The CDC is teaming up with local health departments, pharmacies and mobile clinics to target their campaign toward farm workers. In Kansas, efforts are underway in Barton, Cheyenne, Hamilton, Nemaha, Osborne, Rice, Stanton and Riley counties.

These counties have some of the largest dairies in the state, or they border states experiencing bird flu outbreaks.

Data from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment shows these counties also have lower vaccination rates for the seasonal flu. Less than 25% of the population was vaccinated last year.

And not only are farm workers more vulnerable, but the illness also strains rural health care systems that are already plagued by low staffing.

In Kansas, rural hospitals are perpetually understaffed and sometimes on the verge of closing. According to the University of Kansas Medical Center, more than 470 rural hospitals have closed this century across the country.

But getting farm workers vaccinated this season could ease that stress. Studies show a flu shot can reduce the likelihood of medical visits by as much as 60%.

Durand says the CDC will monitor hospitalizations from serious illnesses caused by the seasonal flu. That will help researchers determine whether that number was reduced as a result of this program.

“We will see if our outreach and the facts we figured out here have resulted in lower cases than maybe we’ve seen in previous years in the same communities,” Durand said.

Calen Moore covers western Kansas for High Plains Public Radio and the Kansas News Service. You can email him at cmoore@hppr.org.

The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their connection to public policy.

Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.

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