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State lawmakers and health officials hope a new law will help eliminate confusion over immunizations and cut down on wasted vaccine supplies in what many predict will be an intense flu season.

Earlier this month, Gov. Jan Brewer signed House Bill 2164, which allows adult vaccination records to be tracked in the state’s electronic immunization registry. In addition, after the law takes effect Sept. 30, licensed pharmacists will be able to administer certain vaccines – including shots for various flu strains – without prescriptions.

The new law “helps the million-plus Arizonans who don’t have health insurance who might not have a doctor (that pharmacists) could call,” said Mindy Rasmussen, director of the Arizona Pharmacy Alliance. “From what I hear, chain pharmacies and others around the state are trying to get as many pharmacists certified to immunize as possible just so we can meet the demand.”

Adult immunization records would be added to the Arizona State Immunization Information System, which was created in 1998 to track children’s vaccinations and ensure the dates and timing of shots were correct. More than 2.3 million children have been registered in the database.

“It’s worked very well with children,” said Dr. Bob England, director of the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, adding that it was equally important to track adult immunizations to maximize their effectiveness and avoid doubling up on shots.

The flu season in Arizona typically peaks from December to April. On top of that, the novel strain of H1N1 virus, commonly referred to as swine flu, is expected to return in a second wave in the fall and winter, England said. The World Health Organization officially labeled swine flu a global pandemic in June.

“This season, we may be confronted with getting a seasonal flu shot and an H1N1 flu shot,” said Sen. Debbie McCune Davis, D-Phoenix, who also is the director of the Arizona Partnership for Immunization. “And (the swine-flu shot) may be in limited supply as it is rolled out to the public.”

The H1N1 flu vaccine also will likely require two shots, increasing the possibility for confusion – and the need to have a reliable way to track dosages.

“This is incredibly timely to allow us to have that tool,” England said. “It would be a shame to waste doses of vaccines if the demand rises to the point where it’s harder to come by.”

In addition to flu vaccines, pharmacists would be able to administer some other adult immunizations and travel shots recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An advisory committee established by the Arizona Department of Health Services will decide which vaccines are safe enough to be given by pharmacists without a prescription.

England said the most-cited case of confusion is for the adult pneumococcal vaccine, which protects against a type of pneumonia often seen as a complication of the flu. It is frequently given alongside the influenza vaccine and requires only a single dosage after age 65.

“Some older adults have gotten the shot over and over and over because they can’t remember which vaccination they had or how long it has been,” England said.

Twenty-seven other states maintain electronic immunization registries for both children and adults, according to the American Immunization Registry Association.