Much to the distress of human resource departments across the country, there’s no way to predict how bad this year’s flu epidemic will be. But a look back at the illness’ impact on employers last year shows it’s a good idea to prepare for the worst.
A study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill released this month looks at the impact of unvaccinated adults on the economy. And last year alone, the flu accounted for $5.8 billion in health care and lost productivity costs. Some 80 percent of those losses were tied to people who chose not to get vaccinated.
