The influenza vaccine can prevent influenza (flu). Flu is a contagious disease that spreads around the
United States every year, usually between October and May. Anyone can get the flu, but it is more
dangerous for some people. Infants and young children, people 65 years and older, pregnant people,
and people with certain health conditions or a weakened immune system are at greatest risk of flu
complications.

Pneumonia, bronchitis, sinus infections, and ear infections are examples of flu-related complications. If you have a medical condition, such as heart disease, cancer, or diabetes, flu can make it worse.

Flu can cause fever and chills, sore throat, muscle aches, fatigue, cough, headache, and runny or stuffy nose. Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults.

In an average year, thousands of people in the United States die from flu, and many more are
hospitalized. The flu vaccine prevents millions of illnesses and flu-related visits to the doctor each year.

CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older get vaccinated every flu season. Children ages 6 months through 8 years may need 2 doses in a single flu season. Everyone else needs only 1 dose each flu season. It takes about 2 weeks for protection to develop after vaccination.

Many flu viruses exist, and they are always changing. Each year, a new flu vaccine is made to
protect against the influenza viruses likely to cause disease in the upcoming flu season.

Even when the vaccine doesn’t exactly match these viruses, it may still provide some protection. The influenza vaccine does not cause flu. The influenza vaccine may be given at the same time as
other vaccines.

Tell your vaccination provider if the person getting the vaccine:

• Has had an allergic reaction after a previous dose of influenza vaccine, or has any severe, life-threatening allergies
• Has ever had Guillain-Barré Syndrome (also called “GBS”)

In some cases, your health care provider may decide to postpone influenza vaccination until a future visit.

Influenza vaccine can be administered at any time during pregnancy. People who are or will be
pregnant during influenza season should receive inactivated influenza vaccine.

People with minor illnesses, such as a cold, may be vaccinated. People who are moderately or severely ill should usually wait until they recover before getting influenza vaccine.

Your health care provider can give you more information.

• Soreness, redness, and swelling at the injection site, fever, muscle aches, and headache can happen after influenza vaccination.
• There may be a very small increased risk of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) after inactivated influenza vaccine (the flu shot).

People sometimes faint after medical procedures, including vaccination. Tell your provider if you feel
dizzy, have vision changes, or have ringing in the ears.

As with any medicine, there is a very remote chance that a vaccine could cause a severe allergic reaction, other serious injury, or death.

The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) is a federal program that was created to
compensate people who may have been injured by certain vaccines. Claims regarding alleged injury or death due to vaccination have a time limit for filing, which may be as short as two years. Visit the VICP website or call 1–800–338–2382 to learn about the program and how to file a claim.

• Ask your health care provider.
• Call your local or state health department.
• Visit the website of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for vaccine package inserts and additional information at www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/vaccines.
• Contact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Call 1–800–232–4636 or visit their website.

When it comes to your health information, you have certain rights. In accordance with HIPAA regulations, this notice from New England Nurses, Inc. and New England Home Health Services, Inc. describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed, and how you can access this information. Please review it carefully.

Get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record: usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

Ask us to correct your medical record: We may say “no” to your request, but we’ll tell you why in writing within 60 days.

Request confidential communications: You can ask us to contact you in a specific way for calls or mail.

Ask us to limit what we use or share: You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations. We are not required to agree to your request, and
we may say “no” if it would affect your care.

Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared information: for six years prior to the date you ask. We will include all the disclosures except for those about treatment, payment, and health care operations, and certain other disclosures. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

Choose someone to act for you: If you have given someone medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your
health information.

For certain health information, you can tell New England Nurses, Inc. and New England Home Health Services, Inc. what you want to share. In these cases, you have both the right and the choice to tell us to share information with your family, close friends, or others involved in your care or in a disaster relief situation. We do not engage in marketing purposes, the sale of your information, the sharing of psychotherapy notes, fundraising, or research.

How do New England Nurses, Inc. and New England Home Health Services, Inc. typically use or share your health information?

Home Care: We can use your health information and share it with other professionals who are treating you.

Run our organization: We can use and share your health information to run our agency, improve your care, and contact you when necessary.

Bill for your services: We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities.

Help with public health and safety issues:
Preventing disease.
Reporting adverse reactions to medications.
Reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or domestic violence.
Preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone’s health or safety.

Comply with the law: We will share information about you if state or federal laws require it, including with the Department of Health and Human Services if it wants to see that we’re complying with federal privacy law.

Work with a medical examiner or funeral director: We can share health information with a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director when required.

Address workers’ compensation, law enforcement, and other government requests:
For workers’ compensation claims;
For law enforcement purposes or with a law enforcement official;
With health oversight agencies for activities authorized by law;
For special government functions such as military, national security, and presidential protective services.

Respond to lawsuits and legal actions: We can share your health information in response to a court or administrative order, or a subpoena.

For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website.

New England Nurses, Inc. and New England Home Health Services, Inc. are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.

• We will promptly notify you if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.
• We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in this notice and give you a copy of it.
• We will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you tell us in writing that we can. If you tell us we can, you may change your mind at any time. Let us know in writing if you change your mind.

Changes to the Terms of This Notice
We can change the terms of this notice, and the changes will apply to all information we have about you. The new notice will be available upon request in our office.

File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated with the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to:
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201

Call 1–877–696–6775, or visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

The Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS) keeps track of all immunizations which doctors and health care providers administer to patients in Massachusetts. The system has been created according to state law (M.G.L c. 111, Section 24M), and is operated by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH). All information in the MIIS is kept confidential.

The law requires that immunizations be reported to the MDPH through the MIIS. It allows for the information to be shared among doctors and nurses providing your care, school nurses, local boards of health, staff at state agencies involved with immunization (including the WIC Program) and Health plans for immunization rate improvement and quality improvement efforts for each plan’s membership. The MIIS enables a new health care provider to check what shots you or your child have received in the past from other providers.Your records will only be available to those involved in your care, who have a reason to know about them. You have the right to limit who else may see your information in the MIIS. If you prefer that your immunization history not be shared in this way, you need to object to sharing your immunization information.

If you have changed your mind or if you change your mind in the future and decide to share the information with more healthcare providers, you will need to withdraw your previous objection to sharing your immunization information by completing the MIIS Objection or Withdrawal of Objection Form.