Fewer children getting flu shots in Mass.
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Childhood flu vaccination is down so far this season in every state but Iowa, per new CDC data.
- That includes Massachusetts, which saw a 5.1% drop.
Why it matters: Flu shots can help prevent kids from getting sick, but they appear to be getting swept up in a broader wave of vaccine skepticism that took hold during the pandemic.
Startling stat: The CDC reported 200 pediatric flu-related deaths in the 2023-24 season — a record high for a non-pandemic flu year.
Zoom in: In Massachusetts, 58.7% of kids were vaccinated in the 2023-2024 season compared to 53.6% in the current 2024-2025 season (as of November).
- Vermont saw a 16.8% decline in childhood flu vaccinations year-over-year, the second biggest drop in the country.
- New Hampshire wasn't far behind with a 14.6% decrease.
- Rhode Island's rate declined 6.6% and Maine's went down 6.2%.
- Connecticut had the smallest decline in New England at 0.5%.
Zoom out: Nationally, childhood flu vaccine coverage is down 7.1 percentage points as of Nov. 30 compared to the same time last year.
- The outlier: Childhood flu vaccine coverage is up 6.5 percentage points in Iowa, where 51% of kids are vaccinated so far.
How it works: These figures are among kids aged six months to 17 years.
- No data was available for Arizona or Mississippi.
Between the lines: The data is in line with a national rise in vaccine exemptions among kindergartners, suggesting increasing vaccine skepticism among parents pretty much nationwide.
What's next: Public health experts worry President-elect Trump's pick for health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., could further erode confidence in many vaccines that have proved safe and effective, as Axios' Maya Goldman and Tina Reed report.