Low efficacy for this year’s flu vaccine

This season’s flu vaccine was only 29% effective, the CDC said yesterday. The flu vaccine had a 47% efficacy until February, but a strain of a virus showed up halfway through the season, dragging down the shot’s overall efficacy. The CDC estimates that between 37 million and 43 million people fell sick with the flu this year, and more than 61,000 people may have died as a result. 

Also from the CDC, new statistics show that most Americans aren’t getting tested for HIV. The agency recommends that those aged 13 to 64 get tested at least once during their lifetime, but fewer than 40% of Americans are doing so. At the same time, only about a third of people most at risk of acquiring HIV were tested last year.