A bipartisan group of seven senators called on the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to share an update on universal flu vaccine research Jan. 17.
Four takeaways:
1. The senators penned a letter to NIAID, asking for more information on the organization's efforts to create a universal flu vaccine.
2. In February 2018, NIAID shared a strategic plan to make a flu vaccine that would:
- Be 75 percent effective
- Protect against multiple flu strains
- Offer protection for at least a year
- Be appropriate for all age groups
3. Congress provided NIAID with $100 million in 2018 and $140 million in 2019 to advance universal flu vaccine research. The letter requests NIAID share how it has used or plans to use these funds.
4. The following senators signed the letter:
- Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.)
- Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.)
- Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.)
- Angus S. King Jr. (I-Maine)
- Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)
- Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)
- Tina Smith (D-Minn.)
"The sooner we can achieve a universal vaccine, the sooner we can reduce the relentless burden the flu places on American families each year," they wrote in the letter. "Congress is committed to helping NIAID actualize that plan and achieve our mutual goal of putting a universal flu vaccine on the market as soon as possible."