Medicaid provider gives flu vaccine to young male patient

Flu

Help protect yourself and others from the flu by getting a yearly flu vaccine.

What you need to know about the flu vaccine

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,1 almost everyone age 6 months and up should get a flu vaccine, especially:

  • Children younger than 5
  • Adults 65 and older
  • Pregnant women
  • Anyone with a weakened immune system or chronic condition (like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or congestive heart failure)

Flu facts

Flu season is here. There is a lot of misinformation out there about the flu, so I want to share some flu facts with you.

The best way to fight flu is to get your flu vaccine.

You can’t get the flu from the flu vaccine. The vaccine contains killed viruses that can’t make you sick with the illness.

The flu is transmitted through contaminated droplets that are coughed, sneezed, or otherwise sent into the air by someone who is infected. You can be infected—and infect others—with the flu for 24 hours before your own symptoms start.

Flu viruses can change over time to create different strains. What protected you last year may not be as effective this year. This is why you need a flu vaccine every year.

Almost everyone 6 months and older should get the vaccine every year as soon as the vaccine is available. This also protects infants and others who can’t get the vaccine themselves.

Learn what else you can do to protect yourself—and what to do if you get the flu—at Humana.com/FightFlu.

  • The yearly flu vaccine is free for Humana Healthy Horizons® members.
  • Even healthy people should get the vaccine because they can:
    • Still get sick
    • Carry the flu virus
    • Spread the flu to someone else
  • Get your flu vaccine every year because:
    • Flu virus strains change
    • Vaccine protection declines over time
    • Last year’s vaccine may not protect you from getting sick this year
  • You can’t get the flu from getting the flu vaccine.
  • Egg-free flu vaccines are available.
    • If you’re allergic to eggs, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist if the egg-free alternative is right for you.
  • Flu vaccination by nasal spray is sometimes available.

Don’t wait! Ask your doctor or your child’s doctor, if you have a child, for the flu vaccine today.

Think you already have the flu?

  • See your healthcare provider or visit an urgent care clinic right away.
  • You may be prescribed an antiviral drug to help reduce the severity and duration of the flu.

Get a flu vaccine and earn rewards

Through Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons®, you may be eligible to earn rewards for getting a flu vaccine. See how much you may be eligible to earn:

Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons in Florida

Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons in Kentucky

Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons in Louisiana

Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons in Ohio

Go365 for Humana Healthy Horizons in South Carolina

To use our online Find a Doctor tool go to Humana.com/FindaDoctor.

Enter your ZIP code, select Medicaid as your coverage type, and select Network from the drop-down menu.

You can then search by the name of the doctor or facility, specialty, such as cardiology, or a condition such as ear infection.

You also can choose All and type any text into the search.

Then click Search.

Click Update my search to search for something else.

If you need help finding and choosing a doctor, call the number on the back of your enrollee ID card to speak with an Enrollee Services representative.

Sources

  1. “Influenza (Flu),” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, last accessed December 7, 2022, https://www.cdc.gov/flu, opens in new window.