Drugstores Await Word on Swine-Flu Vaccine

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- A highly-anticipated swine-flu vaccine could be available as early as next week.

About 600,000 of the vaccines, in the form of a nasal spray called FluMist, will be doled out to 21 states and four large cities by Tuesday, with shipments to other states later in the week.

Consumers have been eagerly awaiting a vaccine since the first H1N1 outbreak this spring and drugstores are holding their breaths waiting to see if they will receive the vaccine.

Walgreen(WAG Quote) spokesman James Cohn said the drugstore has placed orders for the nasal spray and has signed provider agreements with every state. As of midday Friday, the company is still waiting to hear if it will be a point of distribution.

"It could vary by state and right now we don't know in which states we'll get the supply and in which -- if any -- we won't," he said via e-mail. "We also don't know how much we'd be receiving."

Rite Aid spokesperson Cheryl Slavinsky said the drugstore has also registered everywhere possible to be a provider of the vaccine, but is awaiting confirmation from the government.

In light of the swine-flu outbreak, consumers are also taking heightened precautions in protecting themselves from seasonal flu.

Drugstores are taking advantage of the craze, offering seasonal flu shots earlier this year than last year. But an announcement earlier in the week by Sanofi Pasteur, a subsidiary of Sanofi-Aventis(SNY Quote), could cause some disruption.

The largest U.S. supplier of seasonal flu vaccines said there are some delays in shipping vaccines because of the rush to produce the needed millions of doses.