Flu and Covid vaccines together: in pharmacies, price, free?

Here we go again. Like last year, a joint vaccination campaign against Covid and flu will be launched on October 15 2024, announced the Directorate General of Health in a press release on September 17. For this campaign, Covid vaccines adapted to the JN.1 variant will be used. How does it work? Free or paid? For whom?

Vaccinations against influenza + Covid are strongly recommended for people at risk of developing a severe form of these diseases:

• All persons aged 65 and over;
• People over 6 months old with comorbidities (complicated high blood pressure, heart, vascular, liver, kidney, lung problems, diabetes, obesity, cancers, transplant recipients, people with Down syndrome or psychiatric disorders or dementia);
• People with immunodeficiencies;
• Pregnant women;
• People living in the vicinity of or in regular contact with immunocompromised or vulnerable people, including professionals in the health and social care sectors;
• Residents in residential care facilities for dependent elderly people (EHPAD) and long-term care units (USLD).

Anyone who wants to be vaccinated, even if they are not part of the target, can still receive an injection against Covid-19. Populations are eligible from 6 months after their last infection or injection of the Covid-19 vaccine. This period is reduced to 3 months for immunocompromised people and people aged 80 or over, due to their immune deficiency.

One vaccine administered in each arm

Vaccination against influenza and Covid carried out at the same time involves the injection of two different vaccines (one against influenza, the other against Covid-19). two injections (flu and Covid-19) can be practiced on the same day, on 2 separate injection zones (both arms for example but not in the same arm). If the two vaccines are not given at the same time, there is no no deadline to respect between the two vaccinations. Both vaccines are delivered free of charge in pharmacies on presentation of the support voucher. For peoples eligible who have not received a support vouchera voucher can be issued to them by their doctoror their midwiferegardless of age (children and adults) or also, by their pharmacist or nurse for people aged 11 and over. Pharmacists and nurses cannot vaccinate people under 11 years of age.

► You can be vaccinated at your doctor’s office, in a pharmacy, at a nurse’s office, at a midwife’s office or in the hospital departments where you are being treated.

► Make an appointment online on appointment booking platforms or directly contact the healthcare professional (doctor, pharmacist, etc.) with whom you wish to be vaccinated, in specifying that it is a vaccination against Covid-19 and influenza.

The Covid vaccines administered for the 2024-2025 season are only those from the Pfizer laboratory. On July 3, 2024, it obtained marketing authorization for new vaccines adapted to the majority variant in France, JN.1:

• Comirnaty® JN.1 30µg/dose injectable dispersion (gray cap) for adults and 12 years and over
• Comirnaty® JN.1 10µg/dose dispersion (dark blue cap) for children aged 5 to 11 years
• Comirnaty® JN.1 3µg/dose dispersion (yellow cap) for children 6 months – 4 years

The influenza vaccines administered for the 2024/2025 season are

• INFLUVAC TETRA® (from 6 months)
• FLUARIX TETRA® (from 6 months)
• VAXIGRIPTETRA® (from 6 months)

The Efluelda® vaccine marketed by the Sanofi laboratory is no longer part of the flu vaccines in the new campaign. Vaccination against Covid-19 is 100% covered for the entire French population, at risk or not. It is different for vaccination against influenza. Only people at risk of severe forms are 100% covered for vaccination (purchase of the vaccine + injection by a health professional). For people who are not a priority for vaccination, the vaccine and the injection are not covered by Health Insurance.