Because of this year's vaccine shortage, health care providers will be allowed to buy and sell flu shots without going through a distributor, Deputy Florida Health Secretary Bonita Sorenson announced.

The aim is to locate surpluses - if they exist - and direct vaccines to where they are needed most.

This year, healthy people younger than 65 are being asked to skip flu shots. Nearly half of the country's expected supply won't be available after vaccine company Chiron's plant in England was shut down by regulators because of manufacturing problems.

``We want to free up vaccine'' for the people who need shots, including those 65 and older or who have chronic health conditions, Sorenson said. The problem is that even the state health system does not have flu shots. The Florida Department of Health was expecting to receive almost all of its vaccine from Chiron.

``We're trying to track down any local sources, and so far we've not located any,'' Pinellas County Health Department spokeswoman Jeannine Mallory said Thursday. ``We've sent an e-mail to staff saying they will not be getting their free flu vaccine this year. ... We're all in the same boat.''

At the Hillsborough County Health Department, Director Doug Holt said the state health system was working with Aventis Pasteur, the remaining maker of vaccine for the United States, to find out where the company had shipped large orders by ZIP codes.

That would narrow the number of calls Hillsborough health workers would have to make to find surpluses.

Meanwhile, Hillsborough has set up a hot line to help health care providers communicate about who has extra flu shots and who needs them.

A separate hot line also will be available for callers who want to know where to find flu shots. The department is using an online guide from the American Lung Association (www.lungusa.org) to find flu- shot clinics at stores such as Publix and Albertsons.

At Doctor's Walk-In clinics, demand was heavy Thursday, said medical director Stephen Dickey, who expected to run out of vaccine by today.

On Thursday, Aventis announced that the company has produced more than 55 million doses for the United States this year and has distributed more than 33 million.

Aventis has stopped taking orders and told the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that if the company started vaccine production today, it would not be available until February or March.

Reporter Susan Hemmingway Johnson can be reached at (813) 259-7951.