When to get the flu shot

Just over half of Americans have been fully vaccinated against Covid, and another big blow is already looming: the flu shot.

This year’s flu season will be particularly brutal, experts say. Usually flu seasons are more manageable when part of the population has natural immunity, due to infection the previous year. But since many Americans have spent the past fall and winter relentlessly washing their hands and socializing, fewer people than normal have contracted the flu.

This means that an above average number of people are currently at risk, especially as more Americans have let their guard down against Covid in recent months.

The best way to prevent the flu is to get the flu shot, which only 48% of American adults did in late 2019 and early 2020, during the last pre-Covid flu season. Here’s why a flu shot could be very helpful this year, and when you should get it:

This season, the flu will be “a little bit unpredictable,” Dr. Clare Rock, associate professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, told CNBC Make It.

One reason: Scientists typically develop annual flu shots based on the makeup of flu strains that circulated the previous year. The anomaly from last year means it’s more difficult to manufacture this year’s vaccine, Rock says.

When vaccines are “well suited” to the influenza virus in circulation, they can reduce the risk of illness by 40 to 60 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This year’s number may be more difficult to predict.

This is no reason to forgo your flu shot this year. No vaccine is ever 100% effective, and if you are vaccinated you are much less likely to get seriously ill. “The idea is that this flu shot this year will be as effective as it usually is,” Rock said. “But there’s just one more challenge that went into the mix.”

Another challenge: the potential of influenza and Covid circulating at the same time. “During the Covid pandemic, there are potentially issues around every corner,” Rock said. “So I think the premise we’re taking is really to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”

A recent study from the University of Pittsburgh, which has yet to be peer-reviewed, used mathematical modeling to determine what the worst-case scenario might look like. Researchers have determined that this flu season could result in up to 600,000 hospitalizations, if vaccination rates are low and this year’s strain is particularly contagious.

For the prospect, that’s about three times as many flu-related hospitalizations the United States typically sees in a year.

First, get your flu shot. This is the easiest way to reduce your chances of contracting the virus. As White House Chief Medical Advisor Dr Anthony Fauci told NBC News on September 9, “We don’t want to have a bad flu season complicating what we’re already seeing with Covid-19.”

At this point in the pandemic, many hospitals across the country are inundated with Covid cases. Your flu shot could help you avoid hospitalization for reasons unrelated to Covid, a simple way to relieve some of that tension.

If you have health insurance, you can get a free flu shot at most pharmacies, as well as many health clinics, colleges, and workplaces. If you don’t have insurance, you can expect to pay around $ 40 for the vaccine, or up to $ 74 if you need an egg-free version of the vaccine due to an allergy.

Second, after getting a flu shot, be strict about wearing a mask in public places and practicing good hand hygiene, especially after coughing and sneezing. If you are sick, stay home and avoid close contact with other people to prevent the spread.

Like Covid, the flu is spread primarily through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or speaks. In rare cases, the virus can spread on surfaces. Many people are now more lax about wearing masks and social distancing compared to last year, which could lead to an earlier and more dangerous flu season.

The CDC says it’s likely the flu and Covid will both be circulating this fall and winter, and yes, it’s possible to be infected with both simultaneously. They have similar symptoms, such as a fever, chills, or cough, so getting tested when you feel uncomfortable is about to become even more important.

Constant vigilance can be tiring, but these simple steps are the reason so many people avoided getting sick in the past year, and could help you avoid both Covid and the flu this year.

The CDC recommends getting the flu shot in early fall, by the end of October. This part is normal: Timing helps prepare your immune system for the peak of influenza activity, usually between December and February.

“As with the Covid vaccine, it takes a few weeks after you have had the [flu] vaccine for your immune system to respond, ”says Rock. “So you want to make sure you have adequate immunity when we start the flu season. “

Here’s the abnormal part: This year, the timing of the flu shot could be when some people should be getting Covid booster shots.

This could be good news, as it is easier to get the vaccine on the same day than to go to a doctor or the pharmacy several times. Rock says it’s safe to get both on the same day, adding that your clinician will likely administer the vaccines to different arms to reduce any discomfort from side effects.

On the flip side, some experts say reluctance to the Covid vaccine could reduce the number of people getting the flu shot this year. “Even among people who have received the COVID-19 vaccine, there is a kind of vaccine fatigue,” Vanderbilt University infectious disease expert Dr William Schaffner told Healthline in late July. .

If flu shots are already available near you, don’t wait for Covid boosters to become available – go ahead and get your flu shot. It is currently not known when and to whom the booster injections might be given.

And if you can’t get the shot right away, you should know that flu shots are usually available until January. “Better late than never for sure,” says Rock.

Register now: Be smarter about your money and career with our weekly newsletter

Don’t miss: