The flu vaccine may not be very effective this winter, according to U.S. health officials who worry this may lead to more serious illnesses and deaths. Flu season has begun to ramp up, and officials say the vaccine does not protect well against the dominant strain seen most commonly so far this year. Dr. Thomas Frieden with the CDC says the vaccine should provide some protection and still are urging people to get vaccinated. But it probably won’t be as good as if the vaccine strain was a match. Flu vaccine effectiveness tends to vary from year to year. Last winter, the flu vaccine was 50 to 55 percent effective overall, which experts consider relatively good.
