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Though reports suggest this year’s flu vaccine is only 10 percent effective against a mutated strain of the virus, health care professionals in Tennessee are still urging people to get their shots. An examination of flu cases in Australia, used because the Southern Hemisphere’s flu season is earlier than in the north, charted a record number of cases of illness, indicating the vaccine used this year doesn’t work as well as in other years. “The influenza vaccine is still proven to be the best protection we have against the flu and I urge everyone six months and older to get a flu shot now,” Tennessee Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner said in a recent press release. According to the state Department of Health, Tennessee typically sees the highest number of flu cases in January and February, and while the vaccine does not ensure immunity to influenza, it does help reduce the chance of getting sick. For more on this story, visit the Johnson City Press.