CDC says get flu shot by end of October

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reminding everyone that they should get their annual flu shot by the end of October.

>> Read more trending news

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently reminded its followers on Twitter that the deadline set by the CDC is looming.

Some doctors said they’ve never seen a date as a deadline when it comes to flu shots but aren’t surprised, KATU reported. By getting a flu shot before the season ramps up could keep already busy hospitals and clinics from being overwhelmed as they try to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

“If we have a large proportion of the population infected with flu, it can overburden our health care system,” Chunhuei Chi, a professor at Oregon State University’s Global Health program, told KATU. “By dramatically reducing the number of flu patients it prevents our health care providers, the hospital clinics from being overflowed, overburdened. Because they, like us, they won’t initially be able to tell whether the person has flu or COVID-19 at first.”

The CDC recommends flu shots for everyone aged 6 months and older. Depending on the person’s age, there are specific shots approved for the young and those over 65.

There are some flu shots that have been approved for pregnant women and people with specific health conditions.

Click here to look at the options.

For people with egg allergies, there are two options available to them: the quadrivalent recombinant vaccine and the quadrivalent cell-based vaccine.

The CDC said it takes the body about two weeks to build up enough antibodies to fight the flu after getting the vaccine.

Cox Media Group