American leading provider of flu shots, Maxim Health System has announced a $5 increase in price going from $25 to $30 per shot.

A Maxim executive said Tuesday the price increase was necessary to catch up with the rising cost of influenza vaccine supplied by pharmaceutical companies.

Maxim's pricing strategy may prove correct. At a Monday evening shot clinic held at the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Port Orange, several customers parked their shopping carts at a Maxim table near the checkout area and got their shots within five minutes.

However, the clinic was lightly attended, drawing fewer than 20 patients over a four-hour period, despite coupon giveaways by manufacturers of TheraFlu cold medicine and Lysol disinfectants, co-sponsors of the clinic.

The company, which started selling this year's strain of vaccine Sept. 29, is scheduled to conduct 200 flu-shot clinics at area stores, churches and community centers through late November.

Not every shot delivered at a store will cost $30, however. Maxim's contract with Wal-Mart calls for a $29 price. Customers who present a CVS "Extra Rewards" card at a CVS pharmacy can get a shot for $27. Winn-Dixie customers using that chain's preferred-customer card qualify for a $28 price.

People can still get shots at last year's $25 rate if they go to clinics run by five public agencies, the Volusia and Flagler health departments and the fire departments of Daytona Beach, Port Orange and South Daytona. Agency official said they decided to hold the line at $25 because their vaccine expenses had risen only slightly.

Russell Rafferty, chief of emergency medical services at the Port Orange Fire Department, said his department's vaccine costs increased only about 20 to 30 cents per shot this year, so he led efforts to keep the $25 price in place.