WASHINGTON — The 2020-2021 flu season is upon us. And in the midst of a pandemic, the situation is ripe for misinformation. That's why the Verify team is here to look into your claims and your questions about the flu.
QUESTION:
If I got a flu shot in September, will I need another one in the spring?
ANSWER:
No. Experts recommend only one flu shot per flu season.
SOURCE:
Dr. Stuart Ray, Vice-Chair of Medicine for Data Integrity and Analytics and Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine
Glenn Wortmann, MD, Chief of Infectious Diseases at MedStar Washington Hospital Center
PROCESS:
A Verify viewer Patrick sent this email to the research team: "I got a flu shot in September. Will I need another flu shot before the flu is over in the spring?"
Our researchers took that question to the experts, and they told us no. Just one flu vaccination will suffice through the flu season.
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"We don't have any evidence that adults who have been vaccinated once would get many benefits from being vaccinated again in the same season," Dr. Stuart Ray told us.
“The recommendation is for one shot per year," Dr. Glenn Wortmann said in an emailed statement. "Although there is some data to show that the vaccine effect wanes over time, the incidence of influenza usually drops off around the same time, so a booster dose isn’t recommended.”
So no, you do not need two flu shots in the same flu season.