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newsspin North Oaks Physician Group Clinics Offering Flu Shots, No Appointment Necessary [HAMMOND, La.] – With the Louisiana Department of Health seeing more confirmed flu cases than usual for this time of year, North Oaks Physician Group is making it easy to get vaccinated. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the single best way to protect against the flu is to get vaccinated each year. North Oaks Walk-In Clinics in Hammond and Walker and North Oaks Primary Care & After Hours Clinic in Ponchatoula are offering the shots for adults and children, age 3 and older. Most health insurance plans are accepted, and many may cover the vaccine as a preventive service at no cost to you and covered family members. To verify acceptance of your plan and preventive service coverage, contact your insurance provider. Self-pay options also are available at $35 for ages 6 months to 35 months old and $38 for adults and children, age 3 and older. North Oaks is offering the quadrivalent vaccine, which offers protection against the four strains of the flu virus projected by the CDC to be most prevalent for the 2017-2018 season: an influenza A (H1N1) virus, an influenza A (H3N2) virus and two influenza B viruses. A preservative-free vaccine option is available at select clinic locations. Call (985) 230-APPT [2778] or (844) APPT-NOW [277-8669] for more details. North Oaks Walk-In Clinic in Hammond, located at 1900 S. Morrison Blvd. (within North Oaks Rehabilitation Hospital), is open on weekdays from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. North Oaks Primary Care & After Hours Clinic, located at 530 W. Pine St., Suite 1, is open in Ponchatoula from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. North Oaks Walk-In Clinic in Walker, located at 28050 Walker S. Road, Suite L, is open from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. In addition, select North Oaks Physician Group primary and specialty clinics in Denham Springs, Hammond, Livingston, Independence and Walker also are providing flu shots by appointment. To locate the clinic that best meets your needs, call North Oaks Physician Group at (985) 230-APPT [2778] or toll-free at (844) APPT-NOW [277-8669]. You also may visit www.northoaks.org/flu. Vaccination of high-risk individuals is especially important to decrease risk of severe flu illness. Vaccination also is important for health care workers, those who live with or care for high-risk individuals, as well as caregivers of and those who live with infants younger than 6 months. To learn more about influenza and flu vaccines, speak with your personal health care provider or visit the CDC website at www.cdc. gov. 29