January 6, 2005

The Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) will open an adult immunization clinic on January 10 at the Third Ward Multi-Service Center, 3611 Ennis.

Adults, 19 years of age and older, will be able to receive tetanus and diphtheria, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, polio, varicella, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), meningococcal and pneumococcal vaccines at the clinic. International travel vaccines for typhoid and yellow fever and tuberculosis skin tests will also be available.

Adults from any area of Houston are eligible to receive vaccinations at the clinic, open Mondays from 8:30 am to 5:30 p.m. and Tuesdays through Fridays from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. No appointments are necessary.

Costs for the vaccines will range from $37 to $81. A tuberculosis test will be $20.
Adults require the combined tetanus and diphtheria immunization every 10 years throughout their lives. Adults born after 1956 need the combined vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella. Adults aged 65 or older, as well as people aged 19 to 64 with diabetes or chronic heart, lung, liver or kidney disorders, need protection against pneumococcal disease.

Hepatitis B vaccine is recommended for adults in certain high-risk groups, such as health care workers, household and sex contacts of people with chronic hepatitis B virus infection, people with multiple sex partners, those with a recently acquired sexually-transmitted disease, men who have sex with men and injecting drug users.

Hepatitis A vaccine is recommended for adults in certain high-risk groups including travelers to countries where hepatitis A is common, people with chronic liver disease, people who have clotting-factor disorders such as hemophilia, men who have sex with men and users of injection and non-injection illegal drugs.

For more information about services at the clinic, call 713-527-4040.