Vaccination of Older Adults in the United States

In the United States, this time of year tends to coincide with cold and flu season. As such, it seems timely for us to review a recently-published data brief from the National Center for Health Statistics related to flu vaccination.

In this data brief, Karmarow and Elgaddal (2026) used data from the 2024 National Health Interview Survey to estimate the percentage of older adults (aged 65 years and older) who (1) had a flu vaccine in the prior 12 months of the survey and (2) ever had a pneumonia vaccine.  

These authors reported that 67.1 percent had received the flu vaccine in the past 12 months, while 64.7 percent had received a pneumonia vaccine. When compared to data from 2019, the percentages of older adults who had been vaccinated in 2024 was lower.  In 2019, the rates had been 70.5 percent and 67.0 percent, respectively.

These authors also examined the relationship between vaccination and select sociodemographic factors: race and Hispanic-origin, family income, age, and sex. Those who identified as White, non-Hispanic (compared to Black, non-Hispanic and to Hispanic) were more likely to have been vaccinated for the flu and to have been vaccinated for pneumonia. This was also true for those who had higher family income (expressed as a percentage of the federal poverty level). Those aged between 65-74 years were less likely to be vaccinated for the flu, as well as for pneumonia, compared to those in the other two age groups, 75-84 years and 85 years and older. Women (66.7 percent) were more likely than men (62.2 percent) to have received a vaccine for pneumonia, but the percent vaccinated was considered to be similar between sexes (Women: 66.3 percent; Men: 67.9 percent) for the flu vaccine. 

References

Kramarow EA, Elgaddal N. (2026). Vaccinations among adults age 65 and older: United States, 2024. NCHS Data Brief. (547):1─10.