Flu and COVID vaccination was way below target in 2023, ECDC says

Flu and COVID-19 vaccination was “sub-optimal” in several European Union and European Economic Area countries last winter, according to EU health authorities which are urging countries to increase coverage this year.

Between September 2023 and June 2024, there was a large difference in vaccination rates for COVID-19 in Europe among people aged 60 and older, ranging from 0.02 per cent to 66.1 per cent, according to two new European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reports.

A median of 14 per cent of people over the age of 60 received a COVID-19 jab and a median of 22 per cent of people aged 80 years and older were vaccinated, one ECDC report said.

Among people aged 80 and over, the rate ranged from 0.03 per cent in Romania to 93.9 per cent in Sweden.

There were also wide differences in flu jab coverage across the EU and EEA during the 2023/2024 winter season, ranging from 12 per cent in Slovakia to 78 per cent in Denmark, according to the agency.

Overall, Denmark and Ireland were the only two countries to exceed 75 per cent flu vaccination coverage for people aged 65 and over. 

This means countries are falling behind the European Council’s objective set in 2009 to reach a flu vaccination coverage rate of 75 per cent for older age groups.

“With so few countries reaching adequate levels of protection for target groups, it is essential to increase vaccination uptake as we enter the winter season,” Pamela Rendi-Wagner, ECDC director, said in a statement.

The agency warned of a potential co-circulation of seasonal flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and COVID-19 that could put strain on health systems. This has happened in previous years since the pandemic.

They urged people in high-risk groups, such as the elderly and immunocompromised to get vaccinated along with frontline healthcare workers.

The ECDC also recommended that people with respiratory illnesses take precautions such as staying home from work, washing their hands, ventilating indoor areas, and masking in crowded places or among at-risk groups to avoid infecting others.