Feeling sick after getting a flu shot is a normal (and even good!) thing

The intent of flu shots is to avoid the flu. We know this. It’s been drilled into our heads again and again. And yet, a little less than half of adults in the US got the routine jab for the 2018 to 2019 flu season. (This was actually a pretty high vaccination rate; in recent flu seasons, adherence has hovered around 40%.)

The reason for this shouldn’t be the cost—most insurance and Medicaid covers the flu vaccine as preventative medicine. Nor should it be ...