news Canada distributing H1N1 flu vaccine

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OTTAWA (UPI) -- Canada's federal health agency approved the safety of the H1N1 flu vaccine and millions of doses are being distributed across the country, officials said.

Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq told an Ottawa news conference Wednesday two million vials of the vaccine were shipped to provinces and territories last week in anticipation of the approval, and another two million would go out by the end of this week, the Canwest News Service reported Thursday.

The government ordered 50 million doses for the country's 33.5 million people earlier this year after the H1N1 strain, originally called swine flu, emerged in Mexico.

Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. David Butler-Jones made an appeal at the news conference for healthy people not to rush to get vaccinated.

"Those who are at low risk should wait. Those who are at high risk, listen, and when the clinics are available in your community, go there," Butler-Jones said.

High-risk candidates include pregnant women, children, and those with chronic health problems and weakened immune systems.

Various regional health officials across the country told the Globe and Mail no one would be turned away from vaccination clinics, but all echoed the federal request that the most vulnerable come forward first.

The H1N1 virus has been linked to 4,700 deaths worldwide, and 83 in Canada, the reports said.