Health experts urging New Yorkers to get flu vaccine by Halloween – spectrumlocalnews.com

Health experts urging New Yorkers to get flu vaccine by Halloween  spectrumlocalnews.com

Early flu season is underway as health experts recommend getting vaccinated now. BUFFALO, N.Y. — When it comes to this flu season, or any flu season, it's often fair to say expect the unexpected. While there is no crystal ball to predict the severity of the season, there are precautions people can take to reduce the risk of getting sick. Bradley Arthur has been a second-generation managing partner at Black Rock Pharmacy for 40 years and has an ample supply of the flu vaccine, one for adults 65 and older and another for the general population. He says while patients can build resistance within a week to 10 days, it does not guarantee they won't get sick.

"It's another layer of protection," said Arthur. "The vaccine gives us a higher predictability of coverage against a flu strain any given year." "We're entering the prime time to get your flu vaccine. Flu is coming, so it would be critical to get vaccinated no later than Halloween," said Dr. Thomas Russo, professor, chief of infectious diseases, VA Hospital of Western New York Russo says last year's flu season was met with a new variant that people did not have optimal immunity against. "Fingers crossed, we've had two bad flu seasons back-to-back," he said. "So, I'm hoping that some of the immunity that