Ministers have been urged to look into vaccinating all age groups against the flu to avoid a winter double whammy if a second coronavirus wave hits.
The recommendations were made by advisers after a SAGE meeting in April, with Public Health England estimating on average in the last five years 17,000 people have died annually in England of flu, according to The Sun.
However, the yearly deaths vary widely from a high of 28,330 in 2014/15 to a low of 1,692 in 2018/19. Winter flu also puts major strain on the availability of NHS hospital beds, taking up an estimated 50,000.
As it stands, less than half of England is eligible for the free jab, with chief medical adviser Professor Chris Whitty admitting the similarity in symptoms would make