Studies have revealed that influenza vaccination prevents medical visits and hospitalizations.4
- For example, during the 2023–2024 influenza season in the United States, adults 65 years and older who were vaccinated were 41%–51% less likely to visit a healthcare provider due to influenza and 42% less likely to be hospitalized with influenza.4
- Flu vaccines have also been shown to prevent major cardiovascular events, including acute myocardial infarction, especially in people with cardiovascular disease or who have had a prior stroke.5
FDA APPROVED INFLUENZA VACCINES IN THE UNITED STATES, 2025–2026 INFLUENZA SEASON6
Certain influenza vaccines are preferred by the CDC for adults age 65 years and older. If one of these vaccines is not available at the time of administration, people in this age group should get a standard-dose flu vaccine instead. All influenza vaccines for the 2025–2026 season are trivalent vaccines.
TRADE NAME
MANUFACTURER
AGE RANGE
Afluria®
CSL Seqirus
6 months and older
Fluad®*
CSL Seqirus
65 years and older
Fluarix®
GlaxoSmithKline
6 months and older
Flublok®*
Sanofi
9 years and older
Flucelvax®
CSL Seqirus
6 months and older
FluLaval®
GlaxoSmithKline
6 months and older
FluMist®
AstraZeneca
2 through 49 years
Fluzone® High-Dose*
Sanofi
65 years and older
Fluzone®
Sanofi
6 months and older
*These vaccines are preferred for people 65 years of age and older. If none of these vaccines is available at an opportunity for vaccine administration, the CDC recommends giving any other age-appropriate influenza vaccine.
HOW INFLUENZA VACCINES WORK
About two weeks after influenza vaccination, antibodies develop in the body. These antibodies decrease the risk of illness from influenza viruses that are similar to those covered by each year’s influenza vaccines.1
Seasonal flu vaccines are selected each year to protect against the influenza viruses that surveillance indicates are most likely to be circulating in the upcoming flu season.1
Trivalent vaccines are made to protect against three flu viruses: two types of influenza A viruses (H1N1 and H3N2) and one type of influenza B virus.1
Preventing influenza helps reduce the potential loss of function in older adults. Sadly, approximately 18.2% of older adults hospitalized with influenza had significant decreases in functional abilities, and 9.9% experienced catastrophic disability, which is defined as a loss of independence of two or more basic activities of daily living (personal care and hygiene, mobility, and being able to get in and out of bed or up from a chair or sofa, toileting, bathing, and feeding).7
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that all people 6 months of age and older, with rare exceptions, receive an annual flu vaccine.1 The best time to vaccinate older adults against influenza is September and October. However, vaccination should continue after October for those not already vaccinated.1 Most adults, especially those age 65 years and older, should generally not get vaccinated early (in July or August) because protection may decrease over time. However, early vaccination can be considered for any person who is unable to return at a later date to be vaccinated.1 The CDC preferentially recommends the use of higher-dose and adjuvanted flu vaccines for adults 65 years and older. If none of the three preferred products are available, any other age-appropriate vaccine should be used, as per the ACIP recommendations.1
CLICK HERE for the latest ACIP recommendations on seasonal influenza vaccines
EVIDENCE-BASED RESOURCES
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Influenza Vaccination: Information for Healthcare Professionals (web section)
- ACIP Recommendations Influenza (Flu) Vaccine ACIP
- Adult Immunization Schedule by Age: Recommendations for Ages 19 Years or Older, United States, 2024
From Immunize.org
- Influenza Vaccine Products for the Influenza 2025-2026 Season (PDF)
- Free, ready-to-print influenza educational materials for healthcare personnel and patients (web section)
- Ask the Experts: Influenza (web section where Immunize.org experts answer questions for healthcare professionals about influenza disease and vaccines)
- QR Code Links to Vaccine Information Statement (VIS) Translations: Influenza (Flu) Vaccine (Inactivated or Recombinant)
From the American College of Physicians
From the Literature
- Immunity and Ageing: The Immune Response to Influenza in Older Humans: Beyond Immune Senescence
- JAMA: Association Between Influenza Vaccination and Cardiovascular Outcomes in High-Risk Patients: A Meta-Analysis
- Heart: Influenza Vaccine as a Coronary Intervention for Prevention of Myocardial Infarction
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Key facts about seasonal flu vaccine. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/vaccines/keyfacts.html.Published September 17, 2024. Accessed October 14, 2025. 2. Lu PJ, Ding H, Greby SM, Williams WW. Current status and uptake of influenza vaccination over time among senior adults in the United States. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2015;11(12):2849-2851. doi:10.1080/21645515.2015.1075108. 3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Influenza vaccination coverage for persons 6 months and older. https://www.cdc.gov/fluvaxview/interactive/general-population-coverage.html. Accessed July 19, 2025. 4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This season’s flu vaccines reduced flu medical visits and hospitalizations across all ages. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/whats-new/2023-2024-vaccines-reduce-medical-visits.html. Accessed October 10, 2025. 5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Flu and people with heart disease or history of stroke. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/highrisk/heartdisease.htm. Accessed July 19, 2025. 6. Immunize.org. Influenza vaccine products for the 2025–2026 influenza season. https://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4072.pdf. Accessed October 9, 2025. 7. Andrew MK, MacDonald S, Godin J, et al. Persistent functional decline following hospitalization with influenza or acute respiratory illness. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2021;69(3):696-703. doi:10.1111/jgs.16950.