In a statement, the European Union (EU) agency justifies the request with insufficient vaccination coverage in many Member States.

“Vaccination is one of the most effective measures we have to protect the most vulnerable against serious illness, hospitalisation and death. Given that so far few countries have achieved adequate levels of protection for target groups, it is essential to increase vaccination as we enter the winter season,” said Pamela Rendi-Wagner, director of the ECDC, quoted in the statement.

During the 2023-2024 season, the seasonal flu vaccination rate for people aged 65 and over varied significantly between 27, ranging between 12% and 78%, with only two countries achieving coverage greater than 75% of that age group.

In the case of Covid-19, vaccination rates between September 2023 and July 2024 “vary even further, from 0.02% to 66.1%, with average coverage among people aged 60 and over of just 14%”.

According to ECDC, the simultaneous circulation of influenza, respiratory syncytial viruses (also very common in babies) and SARS-CoV-2 (which causes Covid-19), among others, is expected to soon occur, which puts “significant pressure on health systems” and “disproportionately affects people in high-risk groups, such as the elderly and people with weakened immune systems and chronic illnesses.”

Important, he highlights, is also the vaccination of health professionals.

The report from the Directorate-General for Health (DGS) released last Wednesday indicates that more than 1.3 million people have been vaccinated against the flu and close to 970,000 have received boosters against Covid-19 since the start of the campaign.

In terms of vaccination coverage, this is higher for influenza in all age groups compared to Covid-19.

In the case of elderly people aged 85 or over, who can only be vaccinated in the Unified Health System, coverage for influenza reached 53.88% (184,279 people), falling to 42.78% in the case of Covid-19 (146,316 ).

The lowest vaccination coverage is seen in the group between 60 and 69 years old, with 29.06% vaccinated against the flu (377,035) and 21.19% against Covid-19 (275,009), says the report.