Mayo Clinic urges public to vaccinate early for flu this year

(Mankato, MN) – Mayo Clinic says it’s more important than ever to get vaccinated for influenza as soon as possible amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

A release from Mayo says that if more people are vaccinated for the flu, fewer people will become sick with the flu, and fewer patients will require hospitalization.  Mayo says that when there are fewer flu cases, hospital resources are freed up for COVID-19 patients.

“With fall and winter approaching, it’s a very real concern that both influenza and the coronavirus could cause patient surges,” says Jennifer S. Johnson, Family Medicine physician at Mayo Clinic Mankato.  “We need people to do their part and get vaccinated for the flu.”

Mayo says it’s difficult to predict exactly what will happen in the upcoming flu season, but mask-wearing and social-distancing have helped to keep the flu burden down in the Southern Hemisphere, where flu season is just coming to an end.

In the United States, flu activity peaks between December to February.