Will Medicare pay for my flu shot?

Yes. Medicare Part B, which covers doctor and outpatient services, pays for one flu shot each flu season, which starts in the fall and continues through winter and early spring.

Considering flu shots as free preventive services, Part B covers the immunization without any deductibles or copayments as long as you use a provider or pharmacy that accepts Medicare assignment. This means that either of them has agreed to accept the Medicare-approved payment as full reimbursement for the shot.

If you have coverage through a private Medicare Advantage plan, rather than original Medicare, that plan also must pay for one flu shot per season without any deductibles or copayments. Medicare Advantage may require you to use an in-network provider or pharmacy.

When should I get my flu shot?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that most people 6 months and older get a flu shot each flu season, ideally in September or October, so it can be fully effective when cases begin to rise every October. The CDC recommends adults 65 years and older get immunized with a high-dose or adjuvanted vaccine.

People 65 and older are at a higher risk of serious complications if they get the flu, including bacterial pneumonia, ear infections and sinus infections. It also can worsen chronic conditions such as asthma, congestive heart failure or diabetes.

A high-dose or adjuvanted vaccine offers greater protection to older adults, many with weakened immune systems because of age, CDC officials say. Older adults’ immune systems also build up fewer antibodies in response to standard vaccine doses, and those antibodies stay around for a shorter time compared with younger people.

An adjuvant is a vaccine ingredient that helps promote a better immune response. It also can reduce the amount of virus needed for production of a vaccine, which can allow for greater supplies of the vaccine.

What types of flu vaccine are available?

While powerful vaccines have been around for a while, they were first recommended for people 65 and older in 2022. The three types of high-dose vaccines are:

Fluad quadrivalent. This shot is an inactivated vaccine that consists of virus particles that have been grown in culture and then killed to destroy their disease-producing capacity, unlike live vaccines that use live pathogens.