• Posted February 5, 2026

The Reason Why Many Older Americans Skip Seasonal Vaccines

Many middle-aged folks and seniors are shrugging off their annual flu or COVID-19 shot for a very simple reason, a new survey has found.

They just don’t think they need another jab.

About 28% of people older than 50 didn’t get a flu shot for that reason, and 29% didn’t get a COVID vaccination, according to the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging.

That’s despite clear evidence showing that staying up-to-date on vaccines reduces older adults’ risk of serious illness or death, experts said.

“The evidence is clear: these viruses can lead to serious illness, hospitalization and death. That risk increases with age and underlying health conditions, and vaccination reduces that risk,” poll director Dr. Jeffrey Kullgren, an associate professor of internal medicine, said in a news release.

“These findings suggest that we must do a much better job helping people in their 50s and up understand that they will benefit from getting these updated vaccines each year, that the vaccine side effects are mild and short-lived, and that even if they later get infected and develop symptoms, vaccination means they won’t get as sick,” Kullgren said.

For the survey, researchers polled 2,964 people 50 to 98 across the United States about whether they’d gotten flu or COVID vaccine updates, and if not, why.

Overall, 42% of people over 50 hadn’t gotten either the updated flu or COVID vaccines during the past six months. About 29% received both jabs, and 27% got just the updated flu shot.

Concern over the vaccines’ side effects was the second-most common reason for not getting vaccinated, cited by 19% for the flu jab and 27% for the COVID vaccine, the poll revealed.

After that came folks who weren’t convinced the vaccines work – about 18% for the flu shot and 19% for the COVID jab.

Others said it had just slipped their mind, about 10% for flu and 6% for COVID.

Very few — 1% to 4% — cited logistical problems like time, cost, insurance, availability or eligibility concerns.

Changes in vaccine policy under the Trump administration didn’t appear to drive older folks’ reluctance to get their shots, as fewer than 1% said they didn’t get vaccinated because they thought they weren’t eligible.

COVID vaccination is still recommended for most older adults, including two doses a year for everyone over age 65 and anyone with a compromised immune system, and one dose a year for those under 65 who have underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19.

Those health conditions include diabetes, asthma, obesity, high blood pressure, current or previous smoking, and lack of physical activity, experts said.

Federal guidelines still hold that everyone older than 6 months should get an annual flu vaccine, the researchers noted.

Unfortunately, 39% of older folks with these chronic health conditions hadn’t gotten either vaccine, the poll found.

Overall, folks 75 and older had the highest rates of vaccination, with 46% getting the COVID shot and 76% getting the flu vaccine, the poll found.

By comparison, only 37% of those 65 to 74 got the COVID shot and 64% the flu jab, while only 20% of people 50 to 64 were vaccinated against COVID and 42% against flu.

Kullgren noted that it’s not too late during the current cold and flu season to get these vaccines. It’s also about time for seniors over 65 to get their second annual dose of COVID vaccine, if they got their first when it became available in early September.

"This gap between flu and COVID-19 vaccination represents an opportunity to connect the dots for older patients,” Kullgren said. “Both of these viruses can put them at risk, both of them mutate rapidly, and both vaccines should be an annual tradition, even if they don’t get them at the same time.”

The poll was conducted online and by phone Dec. 29, 2025, through Jan. 13.

More information

The National Council on Aging has more about seasonal vaccinations.

SOURCE: University of Michigan, news release, Feb. 2, 2026