The flu vaccination campaign has barely started when the numbers are already soaring. According to the Ministry of Health, more than 1.7 million French people have been vaccinated since the campaign kicked off; on October 14. At the same time last year, barely 1.3 million people had taken the vaccination process.
For its part, GERS Data (Grouping of Pharmaceutical Industry Companies) reports more than 2.1 million doses delivered in a few days. That’s an increase of 36% compared to last year at the same period! A strong start, which reflects a much stronger mobilization than expected. Another instructive figure, of the 1.7 million French people vaccinated, more than three quarters (77%) are over 65 years old.
As a result, in pharmacies, queues are getting longer. In the field, professionals note that people at risk, but also younger populations, come spontaneously to be vaccinated. An encouraging sign for Professor Bruno Lina, eminent virologist, president of the BCD2I Biocluster, who attributes this dynamic to a broader awareness of the danger posed by influenza. But the former member of the COVID-19 Scientific Council believes that this renewed interest in vaccination is the result of collective work: an expanded vaccination offer, clearer communication and the constant involvement of pharmacists, doctors and nurses.
Flu: what about the vaccination campaign launched two weeks ago?
Table of Contents
“We feel today that a certain number of people at risk – since it is mainly they who have been vaccinated, but not only – have become aware that the flu could be a real problem, a serious problem. Thus, last year, there were around 17,000 deaths directly attributable to the flu.
There is therefore a double awareness: the flu is not trivial and the vaccine helps reduce this risk.
And as soon as we succeed in getting this message across, we see a ripple effect appear. Especially since this year, the healthcare offering has expanded, with more types of vaccines available. The public authorities are communicating, as they do every year, and above all, health professionals are fully committed to this campaign.
All of this combined creates a real positive dynamic. We must now go all the way, and continue to increase the vaccination rate significantly. Because, even if we observe an increase of more than 30%, it is not enough to achieve the public health objectives which are 75% vaccinated among at-risk groups. But the trend is good, even very encouraging. So we need to strengthen it as much as possible.”
Flu vaccination: who are these people at risk?
“We too often tend to consider vaccination against the flu as vaccination for the elderly. It’s very reductive. In reality, if we recommend starting to vaccinate from the age of 65, it is precisely because we are still in good health at that age, and vaccination helps to preserve it.
We do sports to stay in shape. So why not get vaccinated to stay healthy. Getting vaccinated is not a sign of weakness, quite the contrary !
And then, vaccination against the flu protects beyond the disease itself. It reduces the risk of myocardial infarction, acute respiratory disorders, exacerbations of asthma or chronic bronchitis, and even stroke. We are increasingly realizing that the beneficial effects of the vaccine go far beyond simple prevention of the flu.“
“Beyond the infectious disease, we protect ourselves against other chronic diseases”
“Cardiologists have understood this well. And, by analogy, it is the same logic with vaccination against Covid. We know that a person with hypertension is twice as likely to develop a serious form as someone who does not suffer from hypertension.
So, the hypertensive must be vaccinated against Covid but also against the flu. This is one of the messages that must be spread. Beyond simple prevention against infectious disease, the vaccine protects against other harmful chronic diseases.
This is particularly the case for older people with stroke, myocardial infarction and progression towards dementia. We know that flu vaccination reduces these risks.“
NAMELY
For the 2023-2024 season, flu vaccination coverage remained below the objectives set by health authorities. It was estimated at 47.1% among all people at risk. Among those aged 65 and over, the rate reached approximately 53.7%. At the end of 2024, vaccination coverage was 42.9% for all targeted populations, confirming a trend towards stagnation despite mobilization efforts.
