Flu: The High Authority for Health (finally) recommends prioritizing certain vaccines, here are which ones

The French National Authority for Health (HAS) recommended on Friday, May 9, that certain flu vaccines be prioritized in the future for older people, marking a change in policy following a particularly violent epidemic.

"The HAS recommends, as part of the vaccination strategy against seasonal flu, that the Efluelda and Fluad vaccines be used preferentially in people aged 65 and over compared to the standard-dose injectable vaccines available," the institution summarises in a press release.

Controversy between laboratories and health authorities

Efluelda, produced by the giant Sanofi, and Fluad, produced by the Vifor laboratory, are vaccines designed to be more effective. The former has a higher dose of antigens, the components of the virus that the immune system learns to recognize, while the latter includes an adjuvant, a component designed to enhance its action.

However, these two vaccines, particularly Efluelda, have been the source of controversy for several years between laboratories and health authorities. Until now, the latter did not consider them to be of any significant benefit compared to other vaccines , and therefore did not recommend them any more than the others.

Because of this situation, Sanofi did not market its Efluelda vaccine this season, considering the price offered by the authorities to be too low.

"New data"

Since then, the 2024/2025 flu epidemic has proved particularly violent, with a high mortality rate compared to previous years, prompting the HAS to revise its position, especially since the vaccines in circulation have only shown limited effectiveness in the elderly.

The HAS explains that it has "taken into account the new data from the literature showing the capacity of these two vaccines" , Efluelda and Fluad, "to reduce the number of hospitalizations among the elderly as well as the number of laboratory-confirmed cases of influenza", estimating their gain in effectiveness compared to standard vaccines at 15-25% .

It therefore recommends them as a priority for those over 65, the main category of people targeted by flu vaccination campaigns.

On the other hand, the HAS refrains from establishing a hierarchy between Efluelda and Fluad, and therefore does not recommend one over another.

This position therefore opens the way for Efluelda to return to the market, even if we will still have to wait for a new opinion from the HAS on the reimbursement conditions , then a resumption of negotiations on its price.