PACA in epidemic phase for flu

Covid-19 is also ‘doing the rounds’.

With the festive season on the horizon, caution is advised! On December 8, the Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS – Regional Health Authority) issued a warning concerning the influenza virus, which is spreading quickly in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region .

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Between November 28 and December 4, the ARS registered 240 visits to hospital emergency departments, compared to 125 the previous week, almost half of which were by under-15s. The authority also identified 649 consultations with SOS Médecins, compared to 489 the previous week.

The epidemic phase was therefore announced for the region. The ARS stresses that seasonal flu “can be serious for frail individuals. In France, it affects between two and six million people every year, with hospitalisation and death of several thousand vulnerable people, mostly aged 65 and over.”

“A flu epidemic means an average of 31,000 flu-related respiratory hospital admissions, 70% of which are for people aged 65 and over,” warns the ARS.

Prevention rather than cure

Given the surge in case numbers, the ARS is urging the most vulnerable people to get vaccinated as soon as possible. These include the over 65s, pregnant women, people with certain chronic illnesses and those with obesity (BMI of 40 or over).

The ARS has also noted a drop in seasonal flu vaccinations compared to the 2021-2022 campaign (a shortfall of between 12 and 14% in the PACA region). In Monaco, the cost of the vaccination is 100% covered by the Principality’s social security system.

The Assurance Maladie (French national health insurance system) will send out a reminder by email, SMS or voice message (depending on stated contact preferences) to anyone who was issued with a vaccine reimbursement voucher by post, but for whom no vaccine reimbursement was registered as at end November.

Pregnant women are not included in the reminder campaign, but their midwife, doctor, pharmacist or nurse can issue them with a 100% reimbursement voucher enabling them to collect the vaccine free of charge from a pharmacy. They can then be vaccinated by one of those health professionals.

In addition to vaccinations, the ARS recommends that people take the following preventive measures: