Estimates of Influenza Vaccination Coverage among Adults—United States, 2017–18 Flu Season

FluVaxView webpage report posted online October 25, 2018

Summary

Influenza (flu) vaccination is the primary way to prevent sickness and death caused by flu. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends annual flu vaccination for all persons aged ≥6 months who do not have contraindications to vaccination.(1) The 2017–18 flu season was a high severity season with high levels of outpatient clinic and emergency department visits for flu-like illness, high flu-related hospitalization rates, and elevated and geographically widespread flu activity across the United States for an extended period.(2) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analyzed data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to estimate flu vaccination coverage for the U.S. population of adults aged ≥18 years during the 2017–18 flu season. Flu vaccination coverage among adults was 37.1%, a decrease of 6.2 percentage points from the previous flu season. Vaccination coverage varied by age group and state, and coverage decreased in all age groups and in most states. However, interpretation of these results should take into account limitations of the survey, including reliance on self-report of vaccination status and decreasing response rates. Preliminary estimates from other data sources do not show decreases in flu vaccination coverage. To improve flu vaccination coverage for the 2018–19 flu season, healthcare providers are encouraged to strongly recommend and offer flu vaccination to all of their patients. People not visiting a provider during the flu season have many convenient places they can go for a flu vaccination.