This Year's Flu Vaccine Missing the Mark

Drug is successfully tested on humans for the first time

(NEWSER) - Soon, you may be able to forget about getting a flu shot each year—because just one jab could cover you for all strains of the illness. Oxford University scientists tested a universal flu vaccine on humans for the first time, and found it to be successful, the Guardian reports. The vaccine works by targeting proteins inside the virus—which are common across the known strains—rather than those on the external part of the virus, which often mutate and require new formulas of the flu shot to be created each year. More»

CDC pushes vaccine for 86% of Americans

(NEWSER) - Enough flu vaccine is now being manufactured to give shots to a record 145 million people, reports the Washington Post. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention plans an unprecedented campaign to ensure as many children, seniors and pregnant women as possible get shots, up to 86% of the population. The vaccine, expected to be among the most effective in years, is being recommended for children up to 18 years old. More»

FDA includes new strains in formula

(NEWSER) - Next year's influenza vaccine will be reformulated to include three new flu strains in the hope of developing a more potent vaccine than this year's effort, according to US News & World Report. An FDA panel approved the move, following the lead of the World Health Organization. This year's vaccine failed to combat the disease in most states because many of the infections have been caused by two strains not matched by the current flu shot. More»

Supplies running low, manufacturers can't make more

(NEWSER) - Severe shortages of seasonal flu vaccines are expected across the country in coming weeks as supplies run short amid increasing demand. Manufacturers have committed their production to making H1N1 vaccines and lack the capacity to make any more seasonal flu vaccines this year. The director of the CDC told lawmakers yesterday that officials are “very frustrated” by the shortages but are powerless to prevent them, the New York Times reports. More»

(NEWSER) - Pregnant women and people who care for infants will be first in line for the swine flu vaccine this fall, the Washington Post reports. Infants, children and young adults under 24, chronically ill adults aged 25 to 64, and health care workers are the other top priority groups under guidelines drawn up by experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention yesterday. More»