In 2023, only 40.8 % of people aged over 60 who are insured by the German health fund Barmer received the influenza shot that the Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) recommends. This is a new low that has not been reached since the end of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
The same data set shows that in the first pandemic year, 2020, the uptake was close to 49 %. Since then the rate has dropped again and is now slightly above the pre‑pandemic level of about 39 %. The World Health Organization, however, calls for a coverage of 75 % in this age group.
The state‑by‑state numbers differ markedly. The lowest uptake was reported in Baden‑Württemberg at 29.7 %, while the highest was in Sachsen‑Anhalt at 55.2 %.
Even people with an especially high health risk are being vaccinated too rarely. Among residents of nursing homes only 48.9 % were inoculated, and among those receiving home care 45.6 %. When comparing older individuals who need care with those who do not, the data from Barmer show that care recipients are actually less likely to receive the flu shot. A similar trend appears among heart‑attack survivors: for those aged 70-79 the vaccination rate is only 43.5 %, two percentage points lower than in the general population of the same age.
Barmer’s CEO Christoph Straub said, “The influenza vaccine is especially important for vulnerable groups”. He noted that studies demonstrate significantly better survival chances for heart patients after they get vaccinated, yet the recommendations are still poorly followed.
These figures refer only to Barmer’s insured. The second‑largest German health fund covers over eight million people, and vaccination numbers for 2024 and 2025 are still pending.