Here’s How Many Doctors and Nurses Are Getting Flu or COVID Shots

Physicians and pharmacists had among the highest rates of influenza and COVID-19 vaccination among healthcare workers in the 2024-2025 season, while nurses came in toward the bottom, according to an annual CDC survey.

Among 2,650 surveyed healthcare workers, 76.3% got a flu vaccine in 2024-2025. Rates were highest among pharmacists (94.6%) and doctors (92.6%), followed by nurse practitioners (NPs; 88%) and nurses (79.8%), reported CDC researchers led by Mehreen Meghani, MPH, of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease.

COVID-19 vaccinations jumped significantly from 31.3% during the prior season to 40.2% in 2024-2025. The highest rates were again among doctors (46.7%) and pharmacists (41.3%), followed by NPs (32.4%) and nurses (26.8%), according to their findings in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Among healthcare workers whose employers required vaccination, 97.3% got their flu shots and 82.8% had a COVID shot. Rates were 42.6% and 19.1%, respectively, for those whose employers didn’t require vaccinations.

Nearly three-quarters of healthcare workers (73%) who weren’t required to get vaccinated but who were offered flu vaccination at work got a shot, compared with a 48.4% rate among those who weren’t offered workplace vaccination. Workplace options also boosted COVID-19 vaccination rates, which were 42.9% among healthcare workers with available worksite shots and 24.7% among those without it.

“A multipronged approach, including educating [healthcare personnel] about vaccination recommendations, coupled with employer vaccination requirements, recommendations, or on-site offer for vaccinations, might increase influenza and COVID-19 vaccination coverage,” Meghani and colleagues wrote.

The researchers surveyed healthcare workers from March 26 to April 17, 2025, and categorized them by four work settings: hospital, ambulatory care, long-term care, and other clinical services. The investigators weighted the survey responses to the distribution of U.S. healthcare workers by factors such as occupation, sex, and work setting.

The 76.3% flu vaccination rate during the 2024-2025 season trailed the 79.5% average seen from the 2015-2016 through 2019-2020 seasons, as well as the 80.6% rate in 2021-2022. Flu vaccination rates in 2024-2025 were highest among those working in hospitals, at 88.3%, and lowest among healthcare workers who worked in long-term care, at 70.5%. Among the other health workers surveyed, flu vaccination rates were 76.1% for other clinical personnel, 69% among assistants/aides, and 76.5% for nonclinical personnel.

COVID vaccination rates were highest among healthcare workers in long-term care or home healthcare settings, at 44.5%, followed by those in hospitals (44.1%), other clinical settings (40.6%), and ambulatory care (39.1%). Among the other health workers surveyed, flu vaccination rates were 46.7% among assistants/aides, 46.1% for nonclinical personnel, and 34.7% for other clinical personnel.

Earlier COVID vaccine availability for the 2024-2025 season may have given employers more time to reach out to their healthcare workers with vaccination policies and campaigns, the CDC researchers said. In addition, the relatively high vaccination rate in long-term care may reflect new rules that require CMS-certified nursing homes to offer staff members a COVID-19 shot.

Study limitations included the potential for selection bias in the surveyed healthcare workers, as well as the possibility that self-reported vaccination status might be affected by social desirability or recall bias. In addition, the limited sample sizes for some subgroups may have led to inaccurate estimates.