Anchorage Health Department Offers Shingles Vaccine Free of Charge
Available to uninsured and underinsured people 60 and older while supplies last
The Anchorage Health Department is offering the shingles vaccine free of charge while supplies last to people
60 and older with no health insurance or insurance that does not cover the shingles vaccine.
Shingles vaccine is available while supplies last at the Department of Health and Human Services vaccination clinic located at 825 L Street, First Floor. No appointment is necessary.
The clinic is open:
Mondays and Fridays from 8:30 - 11:30 am and 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday from 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Shingles is a painful skin rash caused by the varicella zoster virus, or VZV. This is the same virus that causes chickenpox. VZV stays in your body after causing chickenpox. If you have had chickenpox in the past, then VZV is inside you. For reasons that are not fully known, the virus can reactivate years later and cause shingles.
Almost 1 out of 3 people in America will develop shingles during their lifetime. Your risk increases as you get older. People 60 years of age or older should get vaccinated against this painful disease.
Shingles cannot be passed from one person to another. However, a person with shingles can transmit VZV to others. If a person who has never had chickenpox gets infected with VZV, he or she will develop chickenpox, not shingles.
People who have already had shingles can still receive the shingles vaccine to prevent future occurrences of the disease.
Anchorage Health Dept. press release