Flu vaccines: The truth and nothing but the truth!

Believe it or not, flu season starts in a few weeks. And with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters still in the spotlight, now’s a good time to remind employees to get their flu vaccine.

While the peak of flu season is around December through February, the season starts as early as October and can last through May.  

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommend that all people older than 6 months who don’t have contraindications get the flu vaccine.

It’s important to remind employees that the flu vaccine provides important protection from the flu and its complications. How effective the vaccine is depends on things such as age, overall health, the type of vaccine given, the different types of influenza viruses circulating, and the similarity between the viruses and the vaccines.

Encouragement

If employees need a little encouragement, the flu vaccine prevented approximately 1.6 to 6.7 million illnesses, 790,000 to 3.1 million outpatient medical visits, 39,000 to 87,000 hospitalizations, and 3,000 to 10,000 respiratory and circulatory deaths each season from 2010-2011 through 2015-2016, according to the CDC.

While the U.S. saw historically low levels of the flu during the 2020-2021 season, it was because of the widespread nonpharmaceutical interventions, such as wearing masks, social distancing and remote work implemented due to the pandemic. Flu rates went up as these interventions relaxed a little in the 2021-2022 season. And now that the interventions have relaxed a lot, there’s no telling what the severity of the 2022-2023 flu season will be.

But your best bet to keeping your employees healthy and working is to encourage them – and help them – get their flu shot.

Here’s some information you may want to pass along to employees: They can get their flu shot and their COVID-19 booster at the same time. “Experience with other vaccines has shown that the way our bodies develop protection, known as an immune response, and possible side effects after getting vaccinated are generally the same when given alone or with other vaccines,” reports the CDC.

Busting down flu vaccine myths

You’ve probably had a fair number of employees who refused to get the influenza vaccine in the past because “the flu shot gives you the flu.” You know this is malarkey. The best thing you can do is educate employees and separate fact from fiction when it comes to influenza and the influenza vaccine.

Here are some facts and myths from One Medical, a membership-based primary care practice, you can distribute to your employees:

1. The flu shot can give you the flu. We already spilled the beans on this one. It’s a complete and total myth. You can’t get the flu from the flu shot for two reasons: a) the influenza virus used in the vaccine is inactivated (meaning it’s no longer infectious) b) it’s not a virus at all but rather a substance made to trick your body into thinking it’s the flu so you build antibodies. If employees say, “Well, what about the nasal spray?” You can tell them that strain is so weak it can’t reproduce outside the nasal cavity.  
2. You can feel a bit under the weather after getting the flu shot. This is a fact. But the reason isn’t that you’re getting the influenza virus. It’s because the vaccine has kick-started your immune system. Feeling under the weather means you could have a headache, fever, nausea, muscle aches, as well as soreness, redness or swelling near the injection site. These symptoms, however, only last a day or two. Typically, the flu lasts three to seven days.
3. Young and healthy people don’t need a flu shot. Myth! Anyone can get the flu at any time. However, people with chronic conditions and compromised immune systems are more at risk of catching the flu and having more severe symptoms. Remind employees that if they’re around the very young and old, or family with chronic conditions, they should get a flu shot to protect their loved ones.
4. You don’t need a flu shot every year. Myth! Influenza virus strains change from year to year. So, the vaccine you got last year won’t be effective this year because the strain has changed.
5. You should get your flu shot as soon as flu season starts. True! Don’t wait until the peak of flu season to get your shot because it takes two weeks for your body to develop immunity to the influenza virus. That’s why the CDC recommends getting your flu shot in September or October for most people.
6. Flu shots are expensive. Myth. Most insurance companies will cover the cost of the flu shot because they deem it a preventive service. If it’s not covered, most pharmacies offer it at a low cost. And companies can organize flu clinics to give their employees at a nominal fee.

Renee Cocchi

Renée Cocchi has a passion for learning and helping other professionals do their jobs more effectively and efficiently. She earned her Master's Degree from Drexel University, and she’s spent the past few decades working as a writer and editor in the publishing industry. Her experience covers a wide variety of fields from benefits and compensation in HR, to medical, to safety, to business management. Her experience covers trade publications, newsmagazines, and B2B newsletters and websites. When she's not working, she spends her free time just chilling with her family and volunteering at a local dog shelter. Her goal in life is to help all shelter dogs get happy, loving homes!