Flu and Covid jabs: campaign opens 13 October, and both can be given the same day

What is happening

France's joint autumn vaccination campaign against flu and Covid-19 opens on 13 October 2026 in mainland France. Service-Public published the practical conditions on 1 October.

The single most useful line is easy to miss: the two vaccines may be injected on the same day, in two separate areas of the body. One appointment instead of two, and no waiting interval between them.

Who pays nothing: flu and Covid follow different rules

This is the asymmetry that confuses newcomers most.

Covid-19. The vaccines are covered 100 % by Assurance maladie. Vaccination is recommended every year, notably from age 65, and strongly recommended for people aged 80 and over, immunocompromised people, residents of Ehpad and USLD facilities, and people at very high risk of severe illness (assessed individually by a doctor). The page also states explicitly that anyone who wants the vaccine may receive a dose, even outside the target group.

Flu. Here the coverage is targeted. Full coverage of the vaccine and the injection is provided for:

• people aged 65 and over;
• people under 65 with certain chronic conditions (including children from 6 months);
• pregnant women;
• people with obesity, BMI ≥ 40;
• residents of care facilities.

For an adult outside the recommended groups, the Service-Public reference page on the seasonal flu vaccine is blunt: the vaccine is not reimbursed. Children aged 2–17 without a chronic condition are reimbursed at 65 %.

The bon de prise en charge, and the letter many people wait for in vain

Assurance maladie posts invitations — the bon de prise en charge — from September through October, to people its own records place in an at-risk group.

The rules provide two routes:

1. You received a bon. Take it to a pharmacist with your carte Vitale, and the vaccine is handed over free of charge.
2. You did not. A doctor, pharmacist, nurse or midwife can issue the bon for you. This is not a loophole for special cases — it is how the route closes for people the mailing never reached.

Which brings up the classic newcomer mistake: waiting for the envelope. The mailing relies on the health fund already knowing about you, and someone who only recently registered may simply not be in those records yet. No letter does not mean no entitlement.

Who may give the injection

Flu: doctors, midwives, nurses, pharmacists.

Covid-19: doctors, nurses, pharmacists (for those two, patients aged 5 and over), midwives, plus medical and pharmacy students under supervision.

For flu it is worth keeping the age limits separate: a pharmacist may both prescribe and inject the vaccine for anyone aged 11 or over, a nurse likewise from 11 (below that, on a doctor's prescription), and a midwife at any age.

Why this spread of professions matters. Vaccines are given not only by doctors but also in pharmacies and by nurses and midwives, while an autumn appointment with a médecin traitant may not be available. For the Covid-19 vaccine, the source provides that people aged 5 and over book an appointment with a professional who offers it. For someone who has not yet registered with a GP, that is a working way into the system.

The dates are not the same everywhere

13 October is mainland France. In Mayotte the campaign began earlier, in September. Réunion follows the Southern Hemisphere calendar, with its own schedule.

What is worth doing

• Check whether you fall into a flu target group — that decides whether the vaccine is free or paid.
• If no bon arrived but the grounds are there, ask a doctor, pharmacist, nurse or midwife to issue one.
• If you want both jabs, say so up front: they are done in a single visit.

We do not assess individual medical situations: whether to vaccinate, and whether a particular diagnosis falls within the list of chronic conditions, is a decision for a health professional.

Source: Service-Public.gouv.fr, "Grippe et Covid-19 : nouvelle campagne de vaccination conjointe cet automne", published 1 October 2026. Flu vaccine reimbursement figures from the Service-Public reference page "Vaccin contre la grippe saisonnière" (Vérifié le 28 septembre 2026).