Most Americans Refusing Ineffective Flu Vaccine this Year

This years 2015-2016 flu shots in the United States are showing 18 percent effectiveness in adults and 15 percent effectiveness in children according to local news reports popping up around the country. Local news outlets in Michigan, Georgia, California, and other states have decided to run the headline with this information yet, at the time of this writing, no national mainstream news appear to be touching these figures. Although continually touted by mainstream outlets as “the single best way to prevent against the flu,” this is the second year in a row the flu shot’s effectiveness in the U.S. has been under 25 percent. Last January, USA Today ran the headline “Flu Shot Only 23 Percent Effective This Season.” These dismal effectiveness numbers in the U.S. would have been welcomed by “officials” at the Canadian Centre of Disease Control who reported during last years flu season that their flu shots offered zero protection. With 18 and 15 percent effectiveness respectively this year, many are rightfully questioning if the risk outweighs the reward. An October NPR health poll of 3,008 adults revealed that 64% of adults polled were refusing to get the flu vaccine this year.