Notice to Readers: National Influenza Vaccination Week --- November
27--December 3, 2006
Each year in the United States, approximately 5%--20% of the population is infected with influenza virus, an
estimated 200,000 persons are hospitalized from influenza complications, and an estimated 36,000 persons die from influenza.
Influenza vaccination is the best way to prevent influenza and its severe complications. Anyone who wants to reduce their risk
for acquiring influenza should be vaccinated each influenza season. However, annual influenza vaccination is recommended
for the following groups (1).
persons at high risk for influenza-related complications and severe disease, including:
--- children aged 6--59 months,
--- pregnant women,
--- persons aged >50 years,
--- persons of any age with certain chronic medical
conditions; and
persons who live with or care for persons at high risk, including:
--- household contacts who have frequent contact with persons at high risk and who can transmit influenza to
those persons at high risk, and
--- health-care workers.
Although influenza vaccination is recommended before or early in the influenza season, persons who are not vaccinated
early (particularly those in the recommended groups) should seek vaccination as soon as possible throughout the fall and
winter months; influenza viruses can circulate anytime
during November--April.
To help raise awareness regarding the importance of influenza vaccination throughout the influenza season,
the Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, the
National Influenza Vaccine Summit, and other partners
have designated November 27--December 3 as National Influenza Vaccination Week. Because of phased vaccine distribution
this year, many health-care providers did not receive their full
orders of vaccine as early in the influenza vaccination season as
they would have preferred; the timing of distribution this season underscores the
importance of raising awareness of the benefits of vaccination in November, December, and beyond. CDC
encourages state and local health departments, public health
partners, and health-care providers to plan vaccination clinics and other activities to promote influenza vaccination. Free
materials, including posters and educational flyers, are available at
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/gallery.
Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services.References to non-CDC sites on the Internet are
provided as a service to MMWR readers and do not constitute or imply
endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. CDC is not responsible for the content
of pages found at these sites. URL addresses listed in MMWR were current as of
the date of publication.
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