As the coronavirus pandemic continues health professionals are reminding us that it’s also about time for flu season to start and that you should probably be getting your flu shot.
Doctor James Conway from UW-Health says the problem is that at the onset, both the coronavirus and influenza start off pretty much the same.
“Most years… fever, headache, cough, muscle aches? You’ve got the flu. And unfortunately, fever, headache muscle aches, cough this year, you could have covid-19 or you could have the flu and so that’s going to be a real challenge.”
The more that medical professionals can eliminate the flu from the equation, the more they can focus on people who need help recovering from COVID-19
Experts say this year’s vaccine should be more effective than other years, since so many people have been indoors and there’s not been a lot of chances for the flu to mutate like it usually does .
Dr. Conway says they want to make sure they can have people vaccinated against the Flu so that they’re not having to deal with both flu victims and COVID-19 victims.
“You know, we really need to get everyone vaccinated by the end of October, so the earlier we can get people moving, the better off we’re all going to be.”
Dr. Conway says that the vaccine should be available to most people, either through their doctors, pharmacies or through free vaccination programs.