Fewer people in Massachusetts are getting their seasonal flu and COVID vaccinations as the number of respiratory infections in the state continues to rise.
“Certainly we’re going to see more cases of influenza this year than we saw last year,” said Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, chief of the infectious diseases division at Mass General Brigham.
According to Department of Public Health data, about 34% of Massachusetts residents have received their flu shot this season, while only 11% got the COVID vaccine.
“We’re really lagging”
“The vaccination numbers are really alarmingly low … this is about the lowest we’ve been in the last five years,” said Dr. Larry Madoff, who is the medical director of the department’s bureau of infectious disease and laboratory sciences. “Massachusetts usually does pretty well in terms of flu vaccination, but we’re not this year. We’re really lagging.”…