Insurers Expand Flu Vaccination Outreach to Blunt COVID-19 Effects

Insurers Expand Flu Vaccination Outreach to Blunt COVID-19 Effects by Peter Johnson Even as the COVID-19 crisis continues, public health officials are warning that an influenza pandemic might emerge this fall or winter. A double pandemic would kill even more people than COVID-19 on its own and strain the already overworked health care system. To prevent that deadly combination, plans have stepped up their usual flu-season member outreach programs, particularly for seniors. In the Aug. 21 edition of its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tied improved flu vaccination rates to reducing the strain that COVID-19 has put on the health care system. Flu vaccines are fairly easy to access. However, Richard Hughes IV, managing director of Avalere Health's vaccine team, says that payers need to consider how to make special accommodations for patients who are immunocompromised or have other viral infection comorbidities. He points out that those patients have the most need for the flu vaccine — but that they paradoxically have the highest risk from COVID-19 exposure. "A lot of employers have workplace flu clinics," Hughes adds. But now, he observes, "we have a lot of people working remotely in our economy. So I think you’re going to see some additional challenges to getting people vaccinated." UnitedHealth Group is taking a proactive approach to flu vaccination, according to Jennifer Brueckner, Pharm.D., head of the company's Enterprise Flu Committee. She says the company will email all members who have an address on file and UnitedHealth will target certain at-risk members for extra communication. Meanwhile, Cigna Corp. is also expanding its annual vaccine outreach. Cigna members do not pay any cost sharing for flu vaccinations if they get their shots at an in-network provider or pharmacy, according to a company statement. Humana Corporate Medical Director Todd Prewitt, M.D., tells AIS Health via email that the insurer has expanded flu vaccination outreach beyond its usual scope. "Humana has initiated our 'Safer Sooner' campaign theme to encourage all members to obtain the vaccination as soon as it is available through their local providers," Prewitt explains. "As part of the campaign, we've distributed personal safety kits to over seven million members and associates including two cloth masks for personal protection," he says. From Health Plan Weekly Subscribers may read the in-depth article online. Learn more about subscribing to AIS Health's publications.