2018–19 U.S. Influenza Season Vaccination Coverage

In a recent CDC FluVaxView report on the 2018–19 influenza season, flu vaccination coverage among adults 18 years of age or older was 45.3%, an increase of 8.2% from the 2017–18 flu season.

Vaccination coverage with one dose or more of flu vaccine was 62.6% among children age six months through 17 years, an increase of 4.7% from the 2017–18 flu season.

ACOG recommends that all adults receive an annual influenza vaccine and that women who are or will be pregnant during influenza season receive an inactivated influenza vaccine.

An offer of a vaccine from a health care provider plays an important role in increasing flu vaccination coverage among patients, so ob-gyns and other healthcare professionals should recommend influenza vaccination to their patients. They should be prepared to counsel all pregnant women about the safety and benefits of influenza vaccination for themselves and their fetuses and advocate for the benefits of passive immunity from maternal immunization for newborns.