The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released immunization recommendations for the upcoming 2004-2025 flu season.
Influenza, or the flu, circulates annually in the United States. Most people who contract the flu can recover without complications, but there are cases where it can lead to hospitalizations and death, particularly among older adults and younger children.
Flu shots are typically administered at every medical clinic and county health department.
“I think this year is especially important because last year it was even less that people got vaccinated, and unfortunately, the number of pediatric deaths rose last year from the year prior, and so seeing fewer vaccinations but more pediatric deaths and an illness that can be vaccinated against,” said Adam Hurst M.D., pediatrician at New York Institute of Technology Medical Clinic. Hurst said scientists gather regional and national data to determine which strain will be the active one.
“I think this year, they have two types of A in the vaccine and one type of B for in the vaccine, but that right now, they know it’s the flu, and the flu can affect everybody differently,” said Hurst. “It might just be a mild respiratory illness, a cough, a cold, but in other people, it can be a really severe illness and can get them hospitalized and can cause death.”
Hurst said even if the effectiveness is about 50%, people should still get a shot.
“Even having the vaccine can make your immune response stronger, and so you might not get as severely sick from the flu if you had the vaccine. And so while you might still get the illness, it might not make you as sick, which is really important, especially since it can cause death, make you get hospitalized,” he said.
Hurst recommended everyone get the vaccine.
“I think especially anyone with chronic respiratory illnesses, asthma, COPD if you’ve had COVID and you were ill with COVID. I think for younger children, especially because they’re at higher risk to infect more toddlers,” he said.
