Less than a quarter of American adults have received a Covid booster shot this year and only a third have gotten a flu shot, a CDC report shows.
Only 17.9 percent of adults over 18 years of age had received the new Covid vaccine in the week ending November 9.
Adults over 65, who are most at risk of contracting the virus, were more likely to have received the vaccine, but uptake was still low: Less than 40 percent received the booster dose.
Regarding the flu vaccine, 34.7 percent of those over 18 had received the vaccine for this year’s flu season and those over 65 were again more likely to have received it, with uptake of 50 percent.
The CDC says everyone over six months old should get the flu vaccine and a Covid booster each year, but Americans are said to be suffering from “vaccine fatigue” after the pandemic.
It comes as the United States approaches the annual respiratory virus season, and flu activity is now considered low in much of the country. In two states, Louisiana and Georgia, it is considered minimal.
The CDC has revealed the acceptance of flu, Covid and RSV vaccines so far this year.
The graph above shows vaccine uptake over time.
CDC data showed that acceptance of flu and Covid vaccines had increased slightly compared to last year, amid the easing of Covid restrictions and some vaccine mandates.
For the Covid booster vaccine, 4.7 per cent more adults received the vaccine by November 9 this year compared to the same period last year.
And as for the flu vaccine, 0.9 percent more adults had received it this year compared to the previous year.
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.
Among people aged 60 to 74, 31.6 percent had received the updated vaccine.
Those who were uninsured were less likely to receive Covid and flu vaccines, the CDC said.
The agency added that more adults said they intended to get vaccinated, 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.
Data suggests that between nine and 41 million people get the flu each year in the United States, while 900,000 are hospitalized and 34,000 die.
By state, Maryland had the highest proportion of people who had been vaccinated against the flu, at 50.5 percent.
And Vermont had the highest proportion of people who had been vaccinated against Covid, at 33.9 percent.
At the other end of the scale, acceptance was lowest in Puerto Rico, where 5.2 percent of people had received the Covid vaccine and 17 percent had received the flu vaccine.