Dr. Oz calls flu vaccine 'controversial of late'

Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, on Tuesday called the seasonal flu vaccine “controversial of late” and advised various Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiatives as ways to “overcome” the virus.

Appearing on Newsmax, Oz spoke on this year’s flu season, which has been marked by a more severe strain than previous years.

“Flu is always a problem. Every year there’s a flu vaccine. It doesn’t always work very well. That’s why it’s been controversial of late,” Oz said. “But like many illnesses, the best news out there is if you can take care of yourself, so that when you do end up running into the flu, you can overwhelm it.”

While there are concerns that the current flu vaccine may not be a good match for the H3N2 subclade K virus, which is the predominant flu strain this year, experts say the shot should still offer significant protection from transmission and severe illness.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the flu vaccine for everyone 6 months and older, ideally by the end of October each year.


https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5667218-flu-shot-effectiveness-debate/