Where To Get Nasal Flu Vaccine 2020

Who Is Eligible For A Free Flu Vaccination

Its best to get vaccinated against flu in autumn or early winter, before flu starts spreading too widely.

If you are eligible, you should be contacted by the NHS inviting you to get a free flu vaccine. If you havent heard anything yet, you can check in with your GP.

You are eligible for a free flu vaccination if any one of the following applies to you:

• you will be aged 50 or over by 31 March 2022
• you have certain long-term health conditions, including respiratory conditions such as asthma
• youre pregnant
• you live in a residential care home
• you receive carers allowance, or youre the main carer for an older or disabled person who may be at risk if you get sick
• you live with someone who is more likely to get infections
• you are a frontline health or social care worker

Primary age school children, and first year secondary school children will get a nasal spray vaccine or injection at school. Babies under two years old can get a free vaccine at the GP.

Eligibility is broadly the same across the UK, but in Scotland there is additional eligibility for school and nursery teachers and support staff.

For full details on who is eligible, visit the NHS flu guide.

I’ve Heard There Are Different Flu Vaccines Available Which One Is Right For Me

There are several different flu vaccines, and your pharmacist or other health care provider can help find the right vaccine for you. The CDC recommends that everyone ages 6 months and older receive the flu vaccine each year. The CDC does not recommend one flu vaccine over another the most important thing is that you get a flu vaccine every year.

All flu vaccines are quadrivalent , meaning they are designed to protect against four different flu viruses. The flu shots are injections that are administered into your upper arm. The flu shots do not contain a live virus and are either inactivated or recombinant .

There is also a nasal spray. The nasal spray contains live-attenuated influenza virus and is quadrivalent. The nasal spray flu vaccine may be an option for healthy people between the ages of 2 and 49 years who aren’t pregnant or have a weakened immune system.

People who are 65 years and older have additional options. Older adults have the option of receiving either a high dose or adjuvanted flu vaccine. These flu shots are specifically formulated for seniors and in past studies, have demonstrated better protection against the flu in persons ages 65 and older.

What Should I Do If I Get Sick

Common flu symptoms may include fever or chills, muscle aches, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, headache and fatigue/tiredness. If you have flu symptoms and are in a high risk group, contact your healthcare provider. If you are not in a high risk group but have symptoms, get plenty of rest and drink fluids, manage symptoms with Over-the-counter medications when appropriate.

OTC medications like acetaminophen and ibuprofen can be used to treat fever, headache, body aches, and sore throat.

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What Is The Flu

Influenza is a respiratory illness, which means that it affects your airways. It is spread easily from person to person through coughing, sneezing, and even talking. When you get the influenza virus it sometimes takes one to four days before you start noticing symptoms. This means that you could spread the flu to those around you before you even know that you’re sick. Adults may be able to spread the flu for up to seven days after first becoming sick, and children may continue to spread the flu for even longer.

What Is In The Flu Shot

Every year, scientists around the world do their best to get one step ahead of the flu by developing that years iteration of the flu shot. As a reminder, vaccines work by giving your body a chance to fight off an altered version of a virus or bacteria, so that if and when it encounters the live virus in the wild, it already knows how to react, and you never get sick. But whats in a flu shot is a little more complicated.

The recipe starts with the four most common influenza strains from around the world, injected into fertilized chicken eggs or mammalian cells, deactivated so it doesnt give you the actual flu, mixed with a grab-bag of preservatives, antibiotics, and sugars. This combination is then formulated for a shot or spray to make it in time for the 2021 flu season. For those science-is-fucking-awesome types out there, this is indeed awesome.

Its also complex as hell something that keeps virologists on their toes every year. Influenza strains constantly mutate, but scientists get one shot at the annual vaccine, making their best guess some 30 weeks in advance to get the flu shot out to the public.

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The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention Recommends Influenza Vaccines As The Primary Protection Against The Flu Virus To Reduce The Burden On The Us Healthcare System

AstraZeneca today announced that FLUMIST® QUADRIVALENT doses are now available in the US for the 2021-2022 influenza season. FLUMIST QUADRIVALENT, the only Food and Drug Administration -approved nasal-spray flu vaccine, is indicated for people ages 2 through 49. The bulk of AstraZenecas supply for the 2021-2022 flu season is expected to be available by mid-September.

In line with the 2021-2022 recommendations from the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and the American Academy of Pediatrics , FLUMIST QUADRIVALENT continues to be an option for flu vaccination in the US this season. Vaccines may not prevent influenza in everyone who gets vaccinated.

The CDC continues to stress the importance of receiving a yearly flu vaccine, citing vaccination as the most effective protection against seasonal flu infection. Additionally, they reinforce that flu vaccination during the 2021-2022 season will help protect the public against preventable illness, as well as help alleviate burden on the healthcare system.

Since FLUMIST QUADRIVALENT is the only FDA-approved flu vaccine to use a needle-free nasal spray administrative technique, it may be preferred by eligible patients. AstraZenecas live attenuated influenza vaccine has been approved by the FDA since 2003 and is covered by most health insurance plans. The most common side effects of FLUMIST QUADRIVALENT are runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, and fever over 100°F.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

INDICATION

Who Should Not Get The Flu Vaccine

Children younger than 6 months are too young to receive a flu vaccine.

If you are interested in the influenza vaccine nasal spray, there are a few more things to know. Because it contains a live virus, you should not get the influenza nasal spray if you are pregnant, have a weakened immune system or are in close contact with persons who have a weakened immune system , or have taken an influenza antiviral medication within the last 48 hours.

Children and adolescents who receive aspirin or salicylate-containing medication should not receive the influenza nasal spray, nor should young children who have experienced an episode of wheezing in the last 12 months or who have been diagnosed with asthma. People with chronic health conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder or diabetes should talk with their health care provider before receiving the influenza nasal spray.

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Fluenz Tetra Nasal Spray Suspension Influenza Vaccine

This information is intended for use by health professionals

Fluenz Tetra nasal spray suspension

Influenza vaccine

Reassortant influenza virus* of the following four strains**:

* propagated in fertilised hens’ eggs from healthy chicken flocks.

** produced in VERO cells by reverse genetic technology. This product contains genetically modified organisms .

*** fluorescent focus units.

This vaccine complies with the WHO recommendation and EU decision for the 2021/2022 season.

The vaccine may contain residues of the following substances: egg proteins and gentamicin. The maximum amount of ovalbumin is less than 0.024 micrograms per 0.2 ml dose .

For the full list of excipients, see section 6.1.

Nasal spray, suspension

The suspension is colourless to pale yellow, clear to opalescent with a pH of approximately 7.2. Small white particles may be present.

Prophylaxis of influenza in children and adolescents from 24 months to less than 18 years of age.

The use of Fluenz Tetra should be based on official recommendations.

Posology

Immunisation must be carried out by nasal administration.

Do not inject Fluenz Tetra.

Fluenz Tetra is administered as a divided dose in both nostrils. After administering half of the dose in one nostril, administer the other half of the dose in the other nostril immediately or shortly thereafter. The patient can breathe normally while the vaccine is being administered there is no need to actively inhale or sniff.

Getting A Flu Vaccine During The Covid

Yes. Getting a flu vaccine is an essential part of protecting your health and your familys health this season. To protect your health when getting a flu vaccine, follow CDCs recommendations for running essential errands and doctor visits. Continue to take everyday preventive actions.

When going to get a flu vaccine, practice everyday preventive actions and follow CDC recommendations for running essential errands.

Ask your doctor, pharmacist, or health department if they are following CDCs vaccination pandemic guidance. Any vaccination location following CDCs guidance should be a safe place for you to get a flu vaccine.

You can safely get a flu vaccine at multiple locations including your doctors office, health departments, and pharmacies. You can use VaccineFinder.orgexternal iconexternal icon to find where flu vaccines are available near you. When going to get a flu vaccine, be sure to practice everyday preventive actions.

Ask your doctor, pharmacist, or health department if they are following CDCs vaccination pandemic guidance. Any vaccination location following CDCs guidance should be a safe place for you to get a flu vaccine.

Vaccination of people at high risk for flu complications is especially important to decrease their risk of severe flu illness. Many people at higher risk from flu also seem to be at higher risk from COVID-19. If you are at high risk, it is especially important for you to get a flu vaccine this year.

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Why Do We Need The Flu Vaccine Every Year

Children need one dose of the vaccine every year. The exception is children who are in a clinical risk group, have not had a flu vaccine before and are under 9 years of age. These children need two doses of vaccine at least 4 weeks apart. Bristol Children’s Vaccine Centre has a short video showing how the nasal flu vaccine is given.

Flu vaccines have an excellent safety record. They are the best protection we have against an unpredictable virus which can cause severe illness and deaths each year among at-risk groups. It is important to have a flu vaccine every year because the flu virus is very variable and changes over time. Each year there are different strains around, and a new vaccine has to be prepared to deal with them. Vaccination from previous years is not likely to protect people against current strains of flu.

Each years flu vaccine is made to give the best protection against the strains of flu that are expected to circulate in the coming season. The inactivated trivalent vaccine protects against three of the flu virus strains and the inactivated quadrivalent vaccine protects against four of the flu strains which are most likely to be around. The nasal flu vaccine is a quadrivalent vaccine, which protects against four flu virus strains.

Antivirals: What To Do When You Already Have The Flu

When you come down with the flu, antiviral medicine can shorten its duration. The FDA has approved six influenza antiviral drugs in the U.S. But theyre all in somewhat short supply, so you might not be given them if youre not a child or elderly. This is why we get our flu shots, people!

The antiviral you probably already know goes by the brand name of Tamiflu, which you can get over the counter with relative ease even if youre not young or elderly. This drug, along with two others that work in the same manner , block an enzyme the virus needs to replicate. They can shave up to a day off your illness, but they need multiple doses to keep the drug working. Tamiflu, for instance, requires patients to take it twice a day for five days.

The newest antiviral, Baloxavir marboxil , is a single-dose antiviral drug approved in 2019 by the FDA. Baloxavir is for people with basic flu who are 12 years and older and have had symptoms for less than 48 hours. In a phase 2 trial published by The New England Journal of Medicine, it shaved off upwards of 28 hours of flu symptoms . This antiviral stands out in that its the only one that gets to the root of replication, messing with the virus RNA to stop it from reproducing. Also, its one of the only ones to come in a single dose, so you can pop it once and forget about it.

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How Effective Is The Nasal Flu Vaccine

The effectiveness of any flu vaccine varies from year to year, but the nasal flu vaccine is considered comparable to the flu shot, Dr. Adalja says.

There have been questions of the efficacy of the nasal flu vaccine for certain influenza types such as H1N1 in the past, but thats been addressed, says Thomas Russo, M.D., professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York.

The CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices does not show a preference for any type of flu vaccine over another this year, provided you meet the right qualifications.

Where To Get A Flu Vaccination If Youre Not Eligible For A Free One And How Much It Costs

If youre not eligible for a free NHS flu vaccination, you can pay privately for an appointment at a pharmacy. The cost of a private flu jabs ranges from about £8 to about £20.

It tends to be cheaper at supermarket pharmacies the cheapest weve found are at Asda and Tesco . At Boots, Lloyds and Well pharmacy, its around £14.50-£14.99.

At the time of writing, most high street pharmacies are taking bookings for paid flu jabs for appointments in October.

You can also use the NHS Patient Access app to check for available private appointments near you.

Digital thermometers get the lowdown on which to buy and how to get accurate readings

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I Have Asthma Can I Still Get Flumist

It depends. If you have asthma, you may be at a higher risk for developing wheezing when you receive the FluMist vaccine. Children younger than age 5 years who have wheezing that keeps returning may also be at risk for wheezing with FluMist.

If either of these situations apply, the doctor may monitor you or your child for a longer time than usual after a dose of FluMist. This allows them to treat any wheezing that occurs. In some cases, the doctor may recommend that you or your child have a flu shot instead. Talk with your doctor about the best flu vaccine for you or your child.

Who Can Get A Free Flu Vaccine

You can get a free flu vaccine if you are:

• living in a nursing home or other long-term care facility
• in regular contact with pigs, poultry or waterfowl

People with these conditions can also get a free flu vaccine:

• chronic heart disease, including acute coronary syndrome
• chronic liver disease
• chronic kidney failure
• chronic respiratory disease, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease , cystic fibrosis, moderate or severe asthma, or bronchopulmonary dysplasia
• chronic neurological disease including multiple sclerosis, hereditary and degenerative disorders of the central nervous system
• morbid obesity, which means a body mass index over 40
• immunosuppression due to disease or treatment
• children with a moderate to severe neurodevelopmental disorder such as cerebral palsy
• children on long-term aspirin therapy
• those with any condition that can compromise respiratory function, like spinal cord injury, seizure disorder or other neuromuscular disorder, especially those attending special schools or day centres

If you are a carer or a household contact of a person with one of these conditions, you can also get a free flu vaccine.

Free flu vaccines will be offered to carers or household contacts of people who have:

• have an underlying chronic health condition as listed above
• Down syndrome

A carer is someone who provides an ongoing, significant level of care to someone who is in need of care in the home due to illness, disability or frailty.

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Administering Flu Vaccines During The Covid

CDC has released Interim Guidance for Immunization Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic. This guidance is intended to help immunization providers in a variety of clinical and alternative settings with the safe administration of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic. This guidance will be continually reassessed and updated based on the evolving epidemiology of COVID-19 in the United States. Healthcare providers who give vaccines should also consult guidance from state, local, tribal, and territorial health officials.

Information about coadministration of COVID-19 and other vaccines is available. .