[W Forum] To Those Advocating for Nationwide Influenza Vaccination

Discussions are heating up over the 4th supplementary budget (supplementary budget) being pushed forward for the first time in 60 years. Supplementary budgets or disaster relief funds are challenging because they require devising ways to efficiently and effectively deliver benefits to the public in a short period.

Among the proposals is the suggestion to provide flu vaccines to the entire population. While everyone is eagerly awaiting the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, the idea of offering free flu vaccines for the upcoming flu season may appear as an attractive alternative. Haven't the media and medical experts been continuously warning about this? They caution about the twin-demic of simultaneous outbreaks of COVID-19 and the flu. Therefore, they emphasize the importance of getting flu vaccinations, but it is important to be cautious about expanding this to a claim that everyone must get the flu vaccine.

Nationwide flu vaccination is not feasible in reality. Every year, the flu vaccine supply plan is decided by the government starting from March after expert meetings. Since vaccine production takes at least 3 to 6 months, related companies have already started production according to target quantities. Especially this year, considering the infectious disease era, 60% of the supply was secured, which is 10% more than usual. Although 2 million doses have been discarded annually, they boldly expanded by 5 million doses, securing 29.64 million doses of vaccines.

Nevertheless, some politicians argue that even if it is late, vaccination should be pushed by squeezing manufacturers. However, late vaccination is meaningless because immunity develops at least two weeks after vaccination, and those eligible for free vaccination can actually get vaccinated for a fee. Waiting for free vaccination may lead to missed opportunities, making it a potentially bad policy.

Countries that have already experienced the flu season in the Southern Hemisphere during the COVID-19 era have shown that flu incidence actually decreases during the COVID-19 era. In South Korea, the end of the flu season this year was three months earlier than the previous year, and the number of patients also decreased significantly. Among various reasons, the public’s cooperation in thoroughly practicing social distancing and hygiene management at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak made the transmission of the flu virus relatively weak.

There are medical priority groups for flu vaccination. These criteria are based on groups that benefit most from vaccination in terms of disease prevention. They include the elderly, children, infants, pregnant women, chronic disease patients, healthcare workers, and caregivers for infants. If there is a suggestion to prioritize vaccination for low-income groups first, it is difficult to accept. Vaccination priority should be given based on age, underlying diseases, and occupational characteristics rather than income level. For this reason, if expanding free vaccination is considered, it should be prioritized for healthcare workers on the COVID-19 frontlines, immunocompromised patients with underlying conditions, infants, and caregivers in nursing facilities.

What should be done if fever or other suspicious symptoms occur during the flu season regardless of vaccination status? Respiratory clinics and screening centers can conduct tests for both flu and COVID-19 simultaneously to distinguish between the two similar symptoms. Especially for the flu, rapid diagnosis and treatment with antiviral drugs like Tamiflu, which are covered by insurance, mean there is no need for excessive worry.

Health and medical policies must be established based on medical validity and policy feasibility. Even though medical experts unanimously say nationwide vaccination is impossible, those who claim it is feasible confuse the public and cause unnecessary social conflict. Therefore, members of the National Assembly must study even harder with every word they speak.

Shin Hyun-young, Member of the National Assembly, Democratic Party of Korea