Less than a quarter of American adults have received a Covid booster vaccine this year and only a third have gotten the flu shot, a CDC report shows.
Only 17.9 per cent of adults aged 18 and over had received the new Covid vaccination in the week ending November 9.
Adults over 65, who are most at risk from the virus, were most likely to have received the shot, but uptake was still low – less than 40 percent received the booster.
In terms of flu vaccinations, 34.7 percent of those over 18 had received the vaccine for this year’s flu season, while those over 65 are also likely to have received it, with a vaccination rate of 50 percent.
The CDC says everyone six months and older should get the flu vaccine and a Covid booster shot every year — but Americans are said to be suffering from “vaccine fatigue” after the pandemic.
It comes as the US enters the annual respiratory virus season, with flu activity now considered low in much of the country. In two states – Louisiana and Georgia – it is considered minimal.
The CDC has revealed the uptake of flu, Covid and RSV vaccines so far this year
The graph above shows vaccine uptake over time
CDC data showed uptake of both flu and Covid vaccines increased slightly compared to last year, amid the easing of Covid restrictions and some vaccine mandates.
For the Covid booster shot, 4.7 percent more adults received the vaccine on November 9 this year, compared to the same period last year.
And for the flu shot, 0.9 percent more adults had received the vaccine this year compared to the year before.
A total of 39.7 percent of people aged 75 and older had also received the RSV vaccine, which is recommended for older adults to reduce the risk of disease.
Of the 60 to 74 age group, 31.6 percent had received the updated shot.
Those who were uninsured were less likely to get the Covid and flu shots, the CDC said.
The agency added that there were more adults saying they planned to get the vaccinations, with more than 60 percent of adults saying they would get the flu vaccine and more than 50 percent saying they would get the Covid vaccine to get.
Data shows that nine to 41 million people get the flu in the United States each year, while 900,000 people are hospitalized and 34,000 die.
By state, Maryland had the highest percentage of people vaccinated against the flu, at 50.5 percent.
And Vermont had the highest percentage of people vaccinated against Covid, at 33.9 percent.
At the other end of the scale, uptake was lowest in Puerto Rico, where 5.2 percent of people had received the Covid vaccine and 17 percent the flu vaccine.