Flu Vaccination - Age 65+ in Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Immune defense systems weaken with age, putting older adults at increased risk of developing serious health complications from influenza (the seasonal flu). The influenza vaccine helps protect against the flu virus, lowering the risk of infection and lessening the severity of symptoms in those who do get sick.

The rate of flu-related deaths is highest among older adults: It is estimated that 50-70% of seasonal flu-related hospitalizations and 70-85% of seasonal flu-related deaths occur among those age 65 and older. 

The average annual economic burden of influenza among older adults in the United States is $2.4 billion, including direct medical costs and loss of productivity. Flu vaccination is a cost-effective intervention, with direct savings estimated at more than $100 for every older adult who receives the vaccine.

According to America’s Health Rankings analysis, the prevalence of receiving a seasonal flu vaccine is higher among:

• White older adults compared with Hispanic, multiracial, American Indian/Alaska Native and Black older adults.
• Older adults who are college graduates compared with those with less than a high school education.
• Older adults with an annual household income of $75,000 or more compared with those with incomes less than $25,000.
• Older adults living in metropolitan areas compared with those in non-metropolitan areas.
• Older adults without a disability compared with older adults who have difficulty seeing.
• Older adults who have served in the U.S. armed forces compared with those who have not served.

It is recommended that everyone older than 6 months get a flu shot every flu season (usually starting in September or October) unless told otherwise by a doctor. Three formulations of the flu vaccine are preferentially recommended for adults age 65 and older: Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent, Flublok Quadrivalent and Fluad Quadrivalent. Evidence suggests that these formulations are more effective than the standard flu vaccine in older adults.

Medicare covers the cost of one flu shot every flu season. Efforts to provide flu shots to populations of older adults with low vaccination coverage involve delivering vaccines in informal and trusted community-based settings. This approach may also help to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in flu vaccination rates. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers many flu resources, including treatment and prevention strategies, as well as guidance to help manage flu outbreaks in long-term care facilities.

Healthy People 2030 has a goal to increase the percentage of people who receive an annual influenza vaccine.

Duncan, Ian G., Michael S. Taitel, Junjie Zhang, and Heather S. Kirkham. “Planning Influenza Vaccination Programs: A Cost Benefit Model.” Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation 10, no. 1 (2012): 10. https://doi.org/10.1186/1478-7547-10-10.

Putri, Wayan C. W. S., David J. Muscatello, Melissa S. Stockwell, and Anthony T. Newall. “Economic Burden of Seasonal Influenza in the United States.” Vaccine 36, no. 27 (June 22, 2018): 3960–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2018.05.057.

Shenson, Douglas, Mary Adams, Julie Bolen, Karen Wooten, Juliana Clough, Wayne H. Giles, and Lynda Anderson. “Developing an Integrated Strategy to Reduce Ethnic and Racial Disparities in the Delivery of Clinical Preventive Services for Older Americans.” American Journal of Public Health 102, no. 8 (August 2012): e44–50. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300701.