What Is In The 2020 Flu Vaccine

How Much Influenza Vaccine Is Projected To Be Available For The 2022

Flu Vaccine: Why It’s Important in 2020/2021 | UC San Diego Health

Flu vaccine is produced by private manufacturers, so supply depends on manufacturers. Vaccine manufacturers have projected that they will supply the United States with as many as 173.5 million to 183.5 million doses of influenza vaccines for the 2022-2023 season. These projections may change as the season progresses. All flu vaccines for the 2022-2023 season will be quadrivalent . Most will be thimerosal-free or thimerosal-reduced vaccine , and about 20% of flu vaccines will be egg-free.

Who Shouldnt Get Quadrivalent Flu Vaccine

Different influenza vaccines are approved for use in people in different age groups. In addition, some vaccines are not recommended for certain groups of people. Factors that can determine a persons suitability for vaccination, or vaccination with a particular vaccine, include a persons age, health and any allergies to flu vaccine or its components. More information is available at Who Should and Who Should NOT get a Flu Vaccine.

What Protection Does A Flu Vaccine Provide If I Do Get Sick With Flu

Some people who get vaccinated may still get sick. However, flu vaccination has been shown in several studies to reduce severity of illness in people who get vaccinated but still get sick:

A 2017 study showed that flu vaccination reduced deaths, intensive care unit admissions, ICU length of stay, and overall duration of hospitalization among hospitalized flu patients.
Another study in 2018 showed that a vaccinated adult who was hospitalized with flu was 59% less likely to be admitted to an intensive care unit than someone who had not been vaccinated. Among adults in the ICU with flu, vaccinated patients on average spent 4 fewer days in the hospital than those who were not vaccinated.

In addition, its important to remember that flu vaccine protects against three or four different viruses and multiple viruses usually circulate during any one season. For these reasons, CDC continues to recommend flu vaccination for everyone 6 months and older even if vaccine effectiveness against one or more viruses is reduced.

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Who Should Get The Flu Vaccine

Everyone 6 months of age and older should be vaccinated for flu. It is especially important that the people in one of the groups listed below get a flu shot every year as they are more likely to get severely ill with flu.

Children aged 6 months through 18 years
People 50 years of age and older
Pregnant and postpartum women
People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions like asthma, diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, neurologic and neuromuscular conditions and weakened immune systems
People with muscle and nerve disorders that make it difficult to breath or swallow
Children aged 6 months through 18 years on long-term aspirin therapy
People who live in nursing homes and other long term care facilities
Anyone who might transmit flu to someone at risk. For example, health care workers, including those in training, emergency response workers, direct care staff, people who live with or care for anyone on the list above, and people who live with or care for infants under 6 months of age, including parents, siblings, and daycare providers

How Effective Is The Flu Vaccine

The effectiveness of the seasonal flu vaccine depends upon several factors, including how well the flu strains in the vaccine match the strains in circulation. Some studies show that when strains in the vaccine are a good match with the ones that are circulating, vaccinated individuals are 60% less likely to catch the flu than people who aren’t vaccinated, according to the CDC .

Flu vaccine effectiveness can also vary depending on the person being vaccinated the vaccine tends to work best in healthy adults and older children, and less well in older adults.

For instance, a 2013 study from the CDC found that the year’s flu vaccine was not very effective in adults ages 65 and over, Live Science previously reported. Older people who got the vaccine were just as likely to visit the doctor for flu symptoms as those who did not get the vaccine.

Flu shots known as “quadrivalent vaccines” protect against four strains of flu virus. These include two influenza A strains H1N1 and H3N2 and two influenza B strains.

Previously, some flu shots protected against three strains, and were known as trivalent flu vaccines, but starting in the 2021-2022 season, all flu shots are quadrivalent, according to the CDC .

There is also a needle-free flu shot, delivered by a so-called jet injector, which uses a high-pressure stream of fluid to inject the vaccine, the CDC says. It is approved for adults ages 18 to 64.

Predicting Covid’s Future Death Toll

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, or IHME, a research organization at the University of Washington that regularly models Covid deaths, predicts a decline in Covid deaths over the next two months.

So some experts are hopeful that Covid could drop in the U.S. cause-of-death rankings over time.

“It would not surprise me if we have a similar magnitude of deaths from Covid as we do from flu,” said Dr. Chris Murray, the director of the IHME.

Covid death numbers could also fall if hospitals stop routinely testing people for the virus. That’s because the current death counts may include some people who tested positive for Covid when they were hospitalized but died of other illnesses.

Why Do We Need The Flu Vaccine Every Year

Flu vaccines have an excellent safety record. They are the best protection we have against an unpredictable virus which can cause severe illness and deaths each year among at-risk groups. It is important to have a flu vaccine every year because the flu virus is very variable and changes over time. Each year there are different strains around, and a new vaccine has to be prepared to deal with them. Vaccination from previous years is not likely to protect people against current strains of flu.

Each years flu vaccine is made to give the best protection against the strains of flu that are expected to circulate in the coming season. The trivalent vaccine protects against three of the flu virus strains which are most likely to be around. The quadrivalent vaccine protects against four flu virus strains. However, decisions about what to put in the flu vaccine have to be made six months before the flu season starts.

Every February in the Northern Hemisphere, the World Health Organization reviews the types of flu that have been circulating in all parts of the world and chooses the ones which will go into the vaccine for the following autumn. This allows time for the vaccine to be made but it also gives the flu virus time to change before vaccination starts in the autumn. This means that sometimes the flu vaccine may not be a good match for all the strains of flu that are circulating. Read more about the WHO recommendations for the 2022-23 season.

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Evergreen Flu Shot Ingredients: The Preservatives And Additives

Beyond the three to four viral components, a number of additives and preservatives are required to make vaccines effective and to keep them from going bad. These ingredients, sometimes covered as trade secrets by drug companies in other, less-public drugs, have led to many a conspiracy theory that the likes of anti-vaxxers would have you latch onto. Its really much more boring than that. Here are some of the ingredients you will find in the 2019-2020 flu vaccine and why theyre there.

The Ingredient: Aluminum Salts

In: Most vaccinesUse: Boosts bodys response to the vaccine

The Ingredient: Sugar or gelatin

In: Most vaccinesUse: Preservative

The Ingredient: Formaldehyde

In: Most vaccinesUse: Kills viruses or inactivates toxinsThe CDC says: Formaldehyde is diluted during the vaccine manufacturing process, but residual quantities of formaldehyde may be found in some current vaccines. The amount of formaldehyde present in some vaccines is so small compared to the concentration that occurs naturally in the body that it does not pose a safety concern.

The Ingredient: Antibiotics

In: Most vaccinesUse: Prevents bacterial contamination

The Ingredient: Thimerosal

The Ingredient: Egg proteins

What Flu Vaccine Should I Get

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Different flu vaccines are approved for use in different groups of people. There are flu shots approved for use in children as young as 6 months of age and flu shots approved for use in adults 65 years and older. Flu shots also are recommended for use in pregnant women and people with chronic health conditions. The nasal spray flu vaccine is approved for use in non-pregnant individuals, 2 years through 49 years of age. People with some medical conditions should not receive the nasal spray flu vaccine. Your provider will know which flu vaccine is best for you.

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Flu Strains Chosen For The Vaccine

Influenza viruses are constantly changing. Because of this, the influenza strains that were common during last years flu season may not be as prevalent for the current flu season.

Early each year, scientists meet to select the strains to include in the flu vaccine for countries in the northern hemisphere, including the United States. These meetings are held early in the year because vaccine producers need time to make the vaccine so its ready for the beginning of the flu season in the fall.

Vaccine strains are chosen based on what current surveillance data predicts may be the most common strains for the upcoming flu season. However, sometimes the selected strains dont match well with the strains that actually end up being most prevalent during a flu season.

When this happens, vaccine effectiveness can be low. However, if the strains selected are a good match, vaccine effectiveness is higher.

How Effective Is It

Flu vaccine effectiveness can change from year to year. At the time of writing this article, the 20202021 flu season is underway. In the coming months, scientists will begin to get estimates of the effectiveness of the 20202021 flu vaccine.

However, the does currently have information about the estimated effectiveness of the vaccines from past flu seasons.

The chart below shows the effectiveness of the flu vaccine for the previous five flu seasons.

Flu season

26 percent

42 percent

When looking at vaccine effectiveness studies, its important to remember that the results can be influenced by several factors. These factors can include the population studied, the specific flu season, and how the study was conducted.

What Is A Flu Vaccine

Influenza vaccines are vaccines that protect against the four influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season. Most flu vaccines are flu shots given with a needle, usually in the arm, but there also is a nasal spray flu vaccine.

Safety And Side Effects

The inactivated flu vaccine does not contain the live virus and cannot cause flu. Flu vaccines have a very good safety record. The most commonly reported side effects of flu vaccines are:

pain, swelling, bruising, hardness or redness at the injection site
slightly raised temperature
feeling generally unwell

A higher rate of these common side effects has been reported with Fluad, an adjuvanted trivalent vaccine which was recommended for people aged 65 and over in previous years. This year, a quadrivalent inactivated influenza vaccine which also uses an adjuvant is being offered to people aged over 65. Side effects usually last 1-3 days.

There are several different makes of flu vaccine available each year. For more information on side effects, ask for the Patient Information Leaflet for the vaccine you are offered. Additional information about vaccine side effects, anaphylaxis and adverse reactions can be found here.

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Doctors Advise This Is When You Should Get Your Flu Shot

TRI-CITIES, Tenn. Flu season is drawing closer and medical experts say now is the time for people to get vaccinated before flu season goes into full swing.

While Covid numbers have been high the past few years, doctors said social distancing and masking have helped keep the flu at bay.

In 2020 medical experts said flu season was almost nonexistent and in 2021, numbers stayed low.

With restrictions almost completely in the rearview mirror, doctors and pharmacists are concerned this years flu numbers may spike once again.

One is nobodys wearing masks anymore, said Dr. Grat Correll with Ballad Health. Two is weve all returned to large group gatherings. And three people have gotten a little lackadaisical about getting their flu shots in the last couple of years. And thats given the bug a couple of years to grow and become more virulent.

Thats why theyre advising anyone 6 months old and older to get their flu shot within the coming weeks.

You really want to get your flu shot several weeks before flu hits, said Dr. Grat. Usually, we start seeing flu around Thanksgiving time, certainly by Christmas, but it can come as early as October. So nows really the time to start thinking about getting your flu shot.

For those 65 and older the CDC recommends a stronger dose.

Head said theyre already seeing flu cases this early in the season.

Vaccine Supply And Distribution

How much influenza vaccine is projected to be available for the 2022-2023 influenza season?

Where can I find information about vaccine supply?

Special Consideration Regarding Egg Allergy

People with egg allergies can receive any licensed, recommended age-appropriate influenza vaccine that is otherwise appropriate. People who have a history of severe egg allergy should be vaccinated in a medical setting, supervised by a health care provider who is able to recognize and manage severe allergic reactions. Two completely egg-free flu vaccine options are available: Flublok Quadrivalent recombinant flu vaccine and Flucelvax Quadrivalent cell-based flu shot.

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What’s In This Year’s Flu Vaccines

The composition of the 2021-2022 flu shot will be different from last season’s flu shot. Specifically, the two influenza A components of the flu shot differ from those in last year’s shot. In addition, all flu shots for the 2021-2022 season will be quadrivalent, meaning they will contain four strains of flu viruses.

According to the CDC , the 2021-2022 quadrivalent egg-based flu shot contains the following strains of the flu virus:

A/Victoria/2570/2019 pdm09-like virus This H1N1 component differs from last year’s flu shot.
A/Cambodia/e0826360/2020 -like virus This is the H3N2 component that is different from last year’s flu shot.
B/Washington/02/2019- like virus This influenza B strain component is the same as the one in last year’s shot.
B/Phuket/3073/2013-like virus This influenza B strain component was also in last year’s shot.

Then, there are the two types of flu vaccines that don’t involve eggs: cell-based and recombinant-based flu vaccines. In cell-based flu vaccines, the inactivated flu virus is grown in cultured cells from mammals rather than in hens’ eggs. And recombinant flu vaccines are created synthetically. To make this type of vaccine, scientists combine a lab-made antigen specific to the flu virus with a baculovirus .

Are Any Of The Available Flu Vaccines Recommended Over The Others

2020 Flu Vaccine Not A Match For Main Strain

Yes, for some people. For the 2022-2023 flu season, there are three flu vaccines that are preferentially recommended for people 65 years and older. These are Fluzone High-DoseQuadrivalent vaccine, Flublok Quadrivalent recombinant flu vaccine and Fluad Quadrivalent adjuvanted flu vaccine. This recommendation was based on a review of available studies which suggests that, in this age group, these vaccines are potentially more effective than standard dose unadjuvanted flu vaccines. There is no preferential recommendation for people younger than 65 years.

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Where Can I Find Information About Vaccine Supply

Information about vaccine supply is available here.

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I Heard That The Flu Vaccine Was Not Very Effective Why Should I Get It If Its Not Effective

While vaccine effectiveness can vary, studies show that flu vaccination reduces the risk of flu illness by between 40% and 60% among the overall population during seasons when most circulating flu viruses are well-matched to the flu vaccine. It is also the best way to reduce your risk of serious illness. Remember, if you dont get a vaccine at all, thats 0% effective.

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How To Book Your Appointment

If you’re eligible for a free flu vaccine, you can book an appointment at your GP surgery or a pharmacy that offers it on the NHS.

You may also receive an invitation to get vaccinated, but you do not have to wait for this before booking an appointment.

Everyone who is eligible for the free flu vaccine will be able to get it.

GP surgeries and pharmacies get the flu vaccine in batches throughout the flu season. If you cannot get an appointment straight away, ask if you can book one for when more vaccines are available.