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Less than a month after extending the deadline for compliance, Massachusetts is now abandoning its flu shot requirements for students.
The state Department of Public Health said Friday afternoon it was removing the vaccination requirement – which applied to all children over 6 months of age attending Massachusetts Daycare, Kindergarten, kindergarten, kindergarten to grade 12 or college – due to the “mild” flu season and early efforts to administer the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Preliminary data shows the flu season has been mild so far, likely because people have received their seasonal flu shots and embraced mask wear and social distancing due to COVID-19.” DPH said in a statement. “In view of the intensive Commonwealth-wide efforts on COVID-19 vaccination, DPH wishes to ease the burden of influenza vaccination and focus on continuing our COVID-19 vaccination efforts. “
Massachusetts became the only state in the country to impose the flu vaccine requirement in August, amid fears that the traditional flu season coinciding with the second outbreak of COVID-19 could overwhelm hospitals.
However, while the coronavirus did experience a significant resurgence throughout the fall and winter, health experts have said that trade restrictions and social distancing due to COVID-19 have suppressed the transmission of ‘other less contagious respiratory diseases.
The state set a Dec.31 deadline for students to receive the flu shot, but extended it last month to Feb.28, before dropping it on Friday. The mandate had also sparked some modest but passionate protests from some parents and activists.
Although no longer needed, DPH officials say they continue to “strongly recommend” that all people over six months of age receive a seasonal flu shot each year. Experts fear that the mild flu season could lead to a rebound in flu cases later on (this exact situation already appears to be playing out in Australia, as The Washington Post reported Tuesday)
“Because we haven’t been exposed to them as much this year, they could wreak havoc next year,” Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett, program director for the Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center, told NBC. Boston earlier this week.
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