On Friday, September 20, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved FluMist®, a nasal spray flu vaccine that you can give to yourself or a loved one easily. This means you will be able to get a flu vaccine without going to a health care professional for a shot.
While FluMist has been available since 2003, until now it could only be given by a health care professional, such as a doctor or nurse, in a health care setting, such as a pharmacy or clinic. Being able to take a flu vaccine in the comfort of one’s home is a good thing, says Waleed Javaid, MD, Director of Infection Prevention and Control at Mount Sinai Downtown. FluMist is anticipated to be available for patients to use themselves for the 2025-2026 flu season.
“I have given FluMist to my children in the past and they’re happy not to be injected,” says Dr. Javaid. “Now, with the option to take the vaccine at one’s convenience, I can imagine this will help more people stay on top of their flu vaccines—I’ve heard from so many friends and even family members, ‘I’m too busy to get my flu shots.’”
Curious to know more about the FluMist vaccine? Dr. Javaid shares his thoughts.
What is the FluMist vaccine?
The FluMist vaccine has been available for quite some time now. Its main difference from the injected flu vaccines, however, is that it uses a live, attenuated—meaning weakened—virus to generate an immune response for protection against the flu. This is in contrast to the injectables that use inactivated (dead) viruses or proteins from a flu virus.
Who might be suitable or unsuitable to use attenuated flu vaccines?
There are certain populations we might consider unsuitable for a live, attenuated vaccine—primarily people who are immunocompromised, or those who might be on immunosuppressing therapy, such as chemotherapy. In those cases, we might recommend them to use inactivated flu vaccines instead.
Otherwise, FluMist is suitable for children and adults. This might be especially helpful for people who have mobility issues and are unable to go into a clinic, or even in a school setting where a non-health care professional could administer the vaccine.
The convenience of being able to pick up the vaccine at a place and time of your choosing is a really big advantage. So often have I heard from patients, family members, and friends about how they’ve skipped their flu shots because they’re too busy to make an appointment and go into the clinic or pharmacy for them.
Waleed Javaid, MD, Director of Infection Prevention and Control at Mount Sinai Downtown, and Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Fast facts about FluMist
- Initially approved in 2003 for use in individuals ages 5 to 49. In 2007, approved to include children ages two to five. In 2024, approved for self-administration or by a caregiver.
- Home delivery of FluMist is anticipated to be available for the 2025-2026 flu season.
- Quadrivalent flu vaccine that protects against four strains of influenza A and B viruses.
- For individuals ages 2 to 17, the FDA states that a caregiver should administer the vaccine. People ages 18 and older may self-administer the vaccine.
Can I get the flu from a vaccine like FluMist?
While people may experience side effects that are similar to symptoms of the flu, neither the attenuated nor the inactivated flu vaccine can give you the flu.
Side effects from using FluMist can include fevers and chills, runny nose and nasal congestion, and sore throat. In those situations, having plenty of rest, drinking plenty of water, and taking fever and pain medication where necessary are helpful.
How can I get the FluMist vaccine?
The vaccine currently requires a prescription, so this is not something you can just get over the counter. I imagine one could call their doctor’s office for the prescription, and with the availability of telehealth visits, getting in touch with a primary care provider is easier than ever.
The FluMist manufacturers have also set up a website to screen whether an individual is eligible for the nasal spray vaccine. If the system deems the vaccine recipient eligible based on the completed screening, a third-party writes the prescription and ships the vaccine to the provided address.
Is there anything we can expect about the upcoming flu season?
It might be a bit early to say in terms of severity. But with less masking and more relaxed rules of distancing, a flu virus can spread more easily. Thus it’s important to stay on top of your flu vaccines. Make sure you isolate yourself from others if you have cold- or flu-like symptoms, and consider masking if necessary to prevent spread of respiratory illnesses.
Is FluMist effective?
Ever since FluMist was reformulated in 2018 and added back to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) list of recommended flu vaccines, studies tracking the effectiveness of live, attenuated influenza vaccines such as FluMist have shown results similar to those of injectable, inactivated vaccines. It is important to note that the numbers are not from head-to-head comparison studies, and the CDC does not recommend one flu vaccine over another.
| Flu season | Live attenuated influenza vaccine | Inactivated influenza vaccine |
| 2018-2019 | 49% | 7-48% |
| 2019-2020 | 45-66% | 34-52% |
| 2021-2022 | 51-72% | 13-51% |
| 2022-2023 | 61-77% | 71% |