This Year's Flu Vaccine Ineffective in the Elderly

Leading to high rates of hospitalization

This season's flu vaccine was almost completely ineffective in people 65 and older, which could explain why rates of hospitalization and death have been some of the highest ever recorded for that age group, according to early estimates released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For people under 65, getting vaccinated this season reduced the need to go to the doctor for the flu by one-half to two-thirds.

For those 65 and older, though, it helped in just 9% of cases, a number too low to be statistically significant, according to a report in the CDC's Weekly Morbidity and Mortality Report released Thursday.

Comments

[Bernieyeball]

Just turned 65 Jan. 3rd this year. Got my first flu shot ever about a week later as part of my "Welcome to Medicare" physical since it was free. First weekend in Feb. I was sick as a dog for about 48 hours. Didn't even bother going to the clinic on Monday since I felt fine.

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For people under 65, getting vaccinated this season reduced the need to go to the doctor for the flu by one-half to two-thirds.