Since the flu vaccine is starting to trickle in to many offices and pharmacies around the country (we don't have the injectable vaccine in stock yet in our office as of today), I thought I would take my first stab at answering this question.
Unfortunately, there is a complicated answer for the 2010-2011 season, especially since this season's vaccine has 2 seasonal flu strains and the 2009 H1N1 strain in it.
It is probably most easily explained in figure 3 at this link on the CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/professionals/acip/specificpopulations.htm#fig3
However, if you like words more than a diagram, this is how I summarize it:
1. Children who have already turned 9 years old only need one dose.
2. Infants aged less than 6 months cannot get the vaccine until they are 6mo.
3. Children 6mo-8yo who did not get (or it is unsure if they got) any 2009 H1N1 flu vaccine should get 2 doses of 2010-2011 vaccine at least 4 weeks apart.
4. Children 6mo-8yo who have never (or it is unsure if they ever) received seasonal flu vaccine should get 2 doses of 2010-2011 vaccine at least 4 weeks apart.
5. Children 6mo-8yo who got the seasonal flu vaccine for the 1st time during the 2009-2010 flu season AND did not get 2 doses of seasonal flu vaccine during the 2009-2010 should get 2 doses of the 2010-2011 vaccine at least 4 weeks apart.
6. Otherwise, only one dose of flu vaccine is recommended by the CDC during the 2010-2011 season to protect against both seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu.
Lastly, to add a bit more confusion, according to the CDC "children who had laboratory-confirmed 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus infection... are likely to be immune to this virus". These children may not need 2 doses of the 2010-2011 flu vaccine. However, "laboratory-confirmed" H1N1 testing is not the same as the office, ER, or urgent care-based rapid flu swab. This term refers to a PCR or viral culture H1N1 positive result.
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