Israel’s health funds will launch their flu vaccination campaigns for the coming winter next week, but this year the rollout will look different: Vaccines will arrive at clinics gradually throughout September and October rather than all at once because of an update of the flu strains included in the vaccine’s composition.
Clalit, Israel’s largest health fund, has ordered more than 1 million injectable doses and another 25,000 nasal-spray vaccines. Last winter, about 980,000 Clalit patients were vaccinated, with the vaccination rate among those 65 and older at about 55%. Ronen Nudelman, Clalit’s deputy director general and head of its Community Division, said each shipment received would be distributed quickly to vaccination centers and clinics, and that the broad deployment would allow flexibility based on demand and the pace of deliveries.
Maccabi reported that about 560,000 of its members were vaccinated last year, a 28% increase from 438,000 the previous year — the highest figure since the winter of 2020-2021, at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. The highest vaccination rate was among those 65 and older, at 54%, followed by pregnant women at 31%. Maccabi’s chief nurse, Tami Alkalay, urged the public to get vaccinated early, especially those in high-risk groups, noting that last winter saw particularly significant illness.
Meuhedet said an update to the vaccine’s composition caused delays in production and supply worldwide, affecting vaccine availability in Israel at the start of the season as well. Hagar Wexler, director of Meuhedet’s Nursing Division, said vaccines are arriving in Israel gradually, with more substantial quantities expected during October. In any case, she said, experience shows that many people prefer to be vaccinated after the holidays, with the first rain. The health fund has ordered about 250,000 doses this year, including a high-dose vaccine for those 65 and older and the FluMist nasal spray for people ages 2 to 49.
Beyond the logistics, doctors at all the health funds again stressed one message: Influenza is not a mild illness.
“Influenza can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke," Dr. Bat Sheva Gottesman, an infectious disease specialist at Clalit, warned. "In the first week after contracting influenza, the risk of myocardial infarction may be up to six times higher, and the risk of stroke also rises. In some cases, the virus also can cause inflammation of the heart muscle. The vaccine does not only help reduce respiratory illness, complications and hospitalizations, but may also help reduce the risk of cardiac events and stroke, especially among older adults and people with underlying conditions.”
Flu vaccines arrive at Clalit Health Fund warehouses
(Photo: Elad Gutman)
Dr. David Shasha, an infectious disease specialist at Meuhedet, addressed the outlook for the coming season based on monitoring in the Southern Hemisphere.
“The data so far point to a flu season that is not unusual in scale, but there is higher morbidity among children,” he said. “Last year, there were deaths among completely healthy children as a result of flu complications, and it is important for parents to be aware of that. We saw how a mutation that emerged at a late stage later led to significant illness here as well. But it is important to note that despite the change in the virus, the vaccine still provided more than 50% protection, and that is especially significant for populations at risk of severe disease.”
Hagit Itamari, Leumit’s national director of nursing, added: “Last year, we witnessed a very significant wave of illness that included complications and deaths, including among young people. The vaccine can not only save lives, but also protects those around the person who is vaccinated. Ahead of the coming illness season, we are also encouraging people 65 and older to get vaccinated against pneumonia, a vaccine given once in a lifetime and available through Leumit with no copayment, together with the flu vaccine. It is an important and life-saving vaccine.”