The season for respiratory viruses is here, but fewer are getting vaccines

Manuel Vasquez rolled up both his sleeves on Thursday to get the updated influenza and COVID-19 vaccines. The Valley Stream resident said he doesn’t want to take any chances with his health.

The landscaper is 78 years old and has asthma, placing him at higher risk of becoming severely ill from the two respiratory diseases. He said a bout with COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic left his lungs damaged. Repeated flu infections could make it worse.

"When I don’t get [the vaccine], I get the flu," Vasquez said, after receiving his shots from Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital’s Vaxmobile, parked outside Our Lady of Loretto Church in Hempstead. "And it’s very bad. I can’t breathe at night and I have to wake up and use my [inhaler]."

Respiratory virus season is here, the time when flu, COVID-19 and RSV cases ramp up on Long Island and throughout the United States. The peak is usually around December and January.

This year’s flu season seems to be starting earlier, New York State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said during an event in Utica earlier this week. He said the spread of cases has moved from sporadic to regional more quickly than usual. 

Vaccine hesitancy, once reserved for COVID-19 and certain childhood vaccinations, is now impacting the number of people receiving flu shots, experts said. For years, it was a routine part of an annual health check list.

While many senior citizens appear eager to get their vaccines, infectious disease experts are concerned about declining flu vaccination rates among other age groups.

About 52.1% of people over the age of 6 months received the flu vaccine in 2020-21, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2025-6, the estimate was down to 43.8%.

Vaccinations so far are down over last year, McDonald said. But he noted it was not concerning at this point, as many people get their flu shots in October and November.

"Influenza is a killer," said Dr. Aaron Glatt, chief of infectious diseases at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital. "Tens of thousands of people die every year in the United States of influenza — the majority of them have not been vaccinated."

There were over 445,000 lab-confirmed flu cases in New York last season and 16 influenza associated pediatric deaths.

Glatt said vaccination of children and adults is also important to keep elderly people in the household safe during flu season. He pointed out that people can still get the flu after being vaccinated, but they will likely have a more mild case.

Experts have said a culture of vaccine hesitancy in the United States has been growing in recent years, sparked in part by recommendations and mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who oversees the CDC and other agencies, has been a vocal vaccine skeptic. The CDC has cut back on mandated vaccinations for children and no longer recommends the COVID-19 vaccine for a broad swath of the population.

However, the CDC does recommend the flu vaccine for everyone over the age of 6 months.

Abigail Fromm, a registered nurse and director of community education at Mount Sinai South Nassau said there has been a lot of interest from seniors in getting both COVID-19 and flu vaccinations when they see the Vaxmobile.

"They want to get them together," she said. "One and done." 

Thursday’s Vaxmobile stop in Hempstead was coordinated with the Hispanic Brotherhood, a Rockville Centre-based nonprofit. Marguerite Keller, executive director of the group, said the seniors she has spoken with have no hesitation about getting vaccines.

"They are very in tune with their health," she said, noting that the mobile vaccine clinic will make a stop at the group's Rockville Centre office next week. "They want to protect themselves."

By Lisa L. Colangelo

lisa.colangelo@newsday.com@lisalcolangelo

Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.