The plan made sense — schoolkids are most vulnerable to swine flu, so offer the vaccines at schools.

But a shortage of vaccine and shifting rules on who should get it have created a situation where some children received their doses, others are partially immunized and most are unprotected.

More than 800 children in the Lindbergh School District got swine flu (H1N1) vaccine on Tuesday with another 700 expected to get doses next Monday. Meanwhile, Kirkwood and Wentzville school districts had to cancel vaccine clinics this week for lack of supplies.

Health officials indicate that more vaccine is coming, but parents say they're frustrated that the chances of getting vaccinated are seemingly dependent on your address.

"It just seems there's no rhyme or reason," said Nancy Cunneen of Frontenac, who has two children in Ladue School District's preschool. "I wish they would have done it centrally through the county."

St. Louis County health officials said they also are frustrated by the delays and that the plan for delivering to schools was based on size and geography and complicated by factors such as parental consent forms and freezer storage space.

School officials say they're asking parents to be patient and flexible.

"We really don't know when it's coming, how much we're going to get and what kind it's going to be," said Susan Dielmann, spokeswoman for the Ladue School District.

Production of the H1N1 vaccine, which comes in a nasal spray or a shot, has been slower than expected nationwide. About 175,000 doses have been shipped to Missouri and 660,000 to Illinois.

The vaccine distribution system varies by health department. Some, including St. Louis city and St. Charles and Jefferson counties, had initial doses sent directly to doctors with plans for future school clinics. Madison County in Illinois has held

public clinics, but St. Clair County hasn't received enough doses.

St. Louis County will continue to supply doses to public and private schools as they become available, said health director Dr. Dolores Gunn.

"I can't send them all the vaccine that I want to send them, but I will continue to send them what I have," Gunn said. "It's hard to promise vaccine that I don't physically have yet."

Last week, the Missouri health department further complicated the supply issue with new guidelines that moved healthy children and young adults off the high priority list in favor of children with health problems like asthma, diabetes or cerebral palsy.

Meanwhile, Hazelwood School District has already given out hundreds of doses to healthy students. Many of the younger children will need a second, booster dose in the next week or two, and health and school officials say those kids remain a priority.

"We're going to make sure we give them every effort to get their second dose," Gunn said.

Last week, the Parkway district had 1,000 nasal spray vaccine doses ready to give to students. Then came the notice from the health department about giving them first to children with medical conditions.

But Parkway officials weren't sure they had 1,000 students who fit that bill, and the nasal mist is not recommended for anyone with those chronic health issues.

A few phone calls and e-mails later, the district got confirmation that they should go ahead and give out the doses they already had and stick to the new guidelines for future shipments.

Wentzville School District had geared up to vaccinate about 2,000 students on Saturday at the first of its clinics when officials announced Tuesday it was canceled. In all, the district has about 12,000 students who could sign up for vaccination.

"It is frustrating because trying to plan the logistics for a clinic of this size is daunting," spokesman Matt Deichmann said.

Administrators have decided not to schedule another date until they actually have the vaccine on hand.

"The only thing worse than canceling it once would be canceling it a second time," Deichmann said.

Some districts that scheduled vaccination clinics, like Rockwood, had to change those dates to reflect the delayed delivery of the vaccine. Other districts have set tentative dates for mid-November, telling parents that they are unable to predict or control the availability of the vaccine.

Ferguson-Florissant was one of the lucky few districts to get 1,000 doses of the mist vaccine, which they administered to students over two days last week. The supply was enough to offer it to children at nine schools where parents had filled out and returned permission forms, said spokeswoman Nancy Keyser.

Whenever enough vaccine does arrive, it's likely to be too late for many kids who have already caught the swine flu. About 600 schools nationwide, including those in the Jefferson R-7 School District, have closed temporarily this school year because of flu absences.

More than half of the flu illnesses in Missouri this month have been in children ages 5-14.

The St. Louis Immunization Coalition has set up a hot line at 314-644-4358 to help people find seasonal and swine flu vaccines in the area.



The Associated Press and Jessica Bock and Christine Byers of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.