Covid-19, flu: everything you need to know about the double vaccination campaign which begins this Tuesday: for whom, where, with which vaccines ?

The double Covid and flu vaccination campaign begins this Tuesday, October 15, 2024, as announced at the beginning of September by the Ministry of Health.

Since 2022, compulsory vaccination against influenza has been supplemented by vaccination against Covid-19. The two vaccination campaigns will begin together this Tuesday, October 15, 2024. The Ministry of Health announced this at the beginning of September.

For whom?

The two vaccines are recommended for the same people, underlines the Health Insurance website:

People aged at least 65 People under 65, including children from 6 months old, with comorbidities or immunocompromised Pregnant women Residents of nursing homes and care units long-term care (USLD) Caregivers and all persons in regular contact with vulnerable people

People who are not in this target group can still get vaccinated. For Covid, you must not have been infected or have already been vaccinated in the first six months. This period is reduced to three months for immunocompromised people and those aged at least 80.

Where?

Doctors, nurses, pharmacists and midwives can vaccinate you. People in the target group receive a health insurance coverage voucher by mail, recalls in particular Le Parisien. With this voucher, it is possible to get vaccinated directly at the pharmacy or to pick up the flu vaccine to bring on the day of the injection. The Covid vaccine is not delivered to the unit. You must make an appointment in advance with a health professional, on Doctolib for example.

Which vaccines ?

The Pfizer/BioNTech Comirnaty JN1 monovalent mRNA vaccine is available for the 2024-2025 vaccination campaign.

The formulation of this vaccine has been adapted to the JN.1 variant of the virus, which is the most common circulating variant in the country.

As for influenza, this is, as every year, a new vaccine. It was designed based on the strains of the virus that are expected to circulate the most.

Covid vaccination is 100% covered by health insurance from the age of 5. The flu vaccine is 65% guaranteed, only for people to whom it is recommended and for children aged 2 to 17.

At the same time?

Following its assessment, and in order to simplify the vaccination process, the High Authority for Health confirms its recommendation to propose the concomitant administration of the Covid-19 and seasonal flu vaccines, as long as a person is eligible for both vaccinations, regardless of their age.

If the flu and Covid-19 vaccines are not administered at the same time, it There is no time limit to respect between the two vaccinations. There is no minimum time limit to respect between a Covid-19 vaccine and any other vaccine in the vaccination schedule.