US Medicare Will Pay For Flu Shots

US Medicare beneficiaries have no out-of-pocket expenses when receiving influenza vaccinations if the administering physician participates in the program, and there are no deductibles or coinsurance amounts to pay, yet this coverage was used by under 50% of Medicare's elderly enrollees in 1993, the first year of the immunization benefit.

Philip Pennington, vice president at Xact Medicare Services, says studies show up to 54% reductions in death rates for those receiving the shots, and project hundreds of millions of dollars saved in health care costs. In any year, 30 million Americans contract the flu virus, and 10,000-40,000 die as a result of complications.