In a press release, the European Union (EU) agency justifies this request by insufficient vaccination coverage in many member states.
“Vaccination is one of the most effective measures we have to protect the most vulnerable from serious illness, hospitalization and death. Given that, so far, few countries have achieved levels of protection adequate for the target groups, it is essential to increase vaccination at the dawn of the winter season,” said Pamela Rendi-Wagner, director of the ECDC, quoted in the press release.
During the 2023-2024 season, the seasonal influenza vaccination rate of people aged 65 and over varied significantly between 27, ranging from 12% to 78%, with only two countries achieving coverage above 75% of this age group.
In the case of Covid-19, vaccination rates between September 2023 and July 2024 “vary even more, from 0.02% to 66.1%, with average coverage among people aged 60 and over of just 14 % […] “.
According to the ECDC, the simultaneous circulation of influenza, respiratory syncytial viruses (also very common in babies) and SARS-CoV-2 (which causes Covid-19), among others, is expected to occur soon, which places “significant pressure on health systems” and “disproportionately affects people in high-risk groups, such as older adults and people with weakened immune systems and chronic illnesses.”
He emphasizes the importance of vaccinating health professionals.
The report from the Directorate General of Health(DGS) published last Wednesday indicates that more than 1.3 million people have been vaccinated against the flu and that nearly 970,000 have received a booster against Covid-19 since the start of the campaign. Portugal’s seasonal vaccination campaign started on September 20 and is aimed at people aged 60 to 84, other high-risk groups and healthcare professionals.
In terms of vaccination coverage, this is higher for influenza in all age groups than for Covid-19.
Among people aged 85 or over, who can only be vaccinated within the framework of the unified health system, vaccination coverage against influenza reaches 53.88% (184,279 people), compared to 42.78% for Covid -19 (146,316 people).
The lowest vaccination coverage is observed in the 60 to 69 year old group, with 29.06% of people vaccinated against influenza (377,035) and 21.19% against Covid-19 (275,009), the report indicates. .
