Only 59% of U.S. adults intend to receive a flu vaccination this season, according to a poll by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases published on Thursday, a worrying number as public health experts warn of a particularly challenging fall and winter due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nearly half of U.S. adults fear a co-infection with the flu and Covid-19, with 28% saying the pandemic makes it more likely they'll receive a vaccination this year.
The survey also found nearly 62% of Black adults, who disproportionately suffer from underlying conditions that could complicate a flu infection, were unsure or opting not to receive a flu vaccine this season.
Immunization rates rose during the 2019-2020 flu season, with 64% of children and 48% of adults receiving a vaccine, though rates among Hispanic and Black people largely remained unchanged.
"Now more than ever, flu vaccination is critical to not only protect individuals and communities but also to reduce the burden of flu on our healthcare system as we continue to fight the Covid-19 pandemic," NFID CEO Marla Dalton said at a news conference Thursday.
The CDC estimates there were 30 million flu illnesses during the previous season, resulting in 22,000 deaths.
One solution to increase vaccination rates may be alternative settings to receive one, with 25% saying other options like a drive-thru clinic would make it more likely they'd get immunized.
Representatives of the NFID were joined by other experts like the government's top infectious disease official, Dr. Anthony Fauci. In particular, they urged vulnerable individuals and communities to get immunized this season. "We need to increase the number of people getting vaccinated and focus especially on communities of color, which often bear a disproportionate burden of serious flu illness and continue to experience disparities in flu vaccination coverage," said Daniel Jernigan, director of the Influenza Division in the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC.
A rapidly developed vaccination for Covid-19 isn't expected to be available for widespread distribution until 2021, and it may be until 2022 before enough of the country is immunized to return to pre-pandemic activity. A significant number of states are currently reporting Covid-19 spikes, like in the case of Wisconsin which hit its single-day record for positive tests on Thursday. Despite making up around 4% of the world's population, the U.S. owns 21% of all confirmed cases of the coronavirus with nearly 7.3 million, as well as 20% of all reported deaths with around 207,000.
93%. That's the percentage of U.S. adults who were hospitalized during the 2019-2020 flu season who possessed an underlying medical condition, according to a representative of the American College of Cardiology.