Aug 17, 2026 —
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Moderna’s messenger RNA (mRNA) influenza vaccine, for adults aged 50 and older — the first approved mRNA flu vaccine in the United States.
For adults 65 and older, the agency used its accelerated approval pathway, meaning continued approval for that group could depend on a confirmatory trial. The approval marks an expansion of mRNA vaccine technology beyond COVID-19, building on the platform Moderna scaled during the pandemic.
Analysts note that commercial success is not assured, with uptake likely to depend on public-health recommendations, competition from established flu vaccines, and the evolving policy environment. Moderna continues to develop combination and next-generation respiratory vaccines using the same mRNA platform.
