By Rachel Lippmann
St. Louis – Higher than expected demand has forced Barnes-Jewish Hospital to cancel three of its free seasonal flu shot clinics scheduled for later this month.
The October 10th clinic at the Emerson Family YMCA, the October 14th clinic at the Edward Jones YMCA, and the October 24th clinic at the Monsanto Family YMCA have all been canceled.
Barnes-Jewish officials say about 20,000 adults got shots through the clinics between Monday and Wednesday - a 30 percent increase over last year. The hospital has a limited number of shots it can distribute, and there are several other clinics scheduled for the month of October.
The hospital's pharmacy director says a higher unemployment rate and concern over the H1N1 virus are driving more people to take advantage of the free clinics. A complete list of clinics is available here