Appointment-only Flu Clinics for the Lincoln Lab community
To the Lincoln Lab Community,
Flu season will soon be upon us, and we strongly recommend a flu vaccine to help protect you from influenza this year. This email contains important information about when and how you can get your immunization at Lincoln Laboratory. Please read carefully, as the process of getting a vaccine has changed.
This year’s flu clinics will be by appointment only, and the fees associated with your immunization will be billed to your insurance. This approach will help us sustain providing this convenience for MIT community members. Please note: All health insurance plans – including all MIT-sponsored health insurance plans – fully cover the cost of flu vaccines.
This year’s Lincoln Laboratory flu clinic will be held Monday–Thursday, October 20–23, from 9 a.m.–4 p.m., in AC-120 and AC-122 (near the cafeteria). This clinic is exclusively open to current, badge-holding Lincoln Laboratory personnel, regardless of where they get their healthcare. There will be no walk-in appointments, and all appointments must be made at least 48 hours in advance. High-dose vaccines will be available for individuals older than 65.
Family members who are MIT Health patients can make vaccine appointments at the MIT Health Lexington Care Center or at the campus clinic, or they can get their flu vaccines at a retail pharmacy such as CVS or Walgreens.
How do I make an appointment for my flu vaccine?
Making an appointment for the flu clinic is a two-step process:
Step 1:
Book your Lincoln Laboratory appointment online and select the date and time you would like your vaccine. You must make your appointment 48 hours in advance. There will be no walk-in appointments this year.
Step 2:
Three days before your appointment, you will get a text message from 75442 or an email from MIT Health asking you to provide or verify your health insurance information. This is a required step and must be completed before your appointment.
You must provide your insurance information (or confirm the information we have on file) at least 48 hours before your appointment. If we do not have your insurance information 48 hours before your appointment, your appointment will be canceled, and you will need to book a new appointment to get your immunization.
Finally, you must complete the entire registration process, which includes filling out consent forms. We cannot process your flu vaccine unless you filled out all the forms and answered every question.
At your appointment
- Wear flu-vaccine-friendly clothing with short sleeves. If it is cold, wear a single, easy-to-remove outer layer, like a jacket.
- If you need documentation of your vaccine, ask a staff member at the clinic for a paper receipt. Or, if you are an MIT Health patient, you can get documentation of your vaccination through our patient portal, HealthELife.
Other options for getting your vaccine
Get your flu vaccine at a retail pharmacy, at a flu clinic in your community, or from your primary care provider at MIT Health or elsewhere. All MIT-sponsored insurance plans allow you to get your flu vaccine anywhere Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is accepted.
About this year’s vaccine
The 2025–2026 flu vaccine offered at MIT is trivalent, protecting against two strains of influenza A (H1N1 and H3N2) and one strain of influenza B. The vaccine is preservative-free and does not contain thimerosal.
Active flu strains are different each year, so even if you got a flu vaccine last year, we strongly recommend that you get this year’s vaccine. More information about this year’s vaccine is available from the CDC (CDC Vaccine Information Statement) and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Massachusetts Immunization Information System).
The flu vaccine does not provide protection against COVID-19. COVID-19 vaccines will not be available at these flu clinics. You can get a COVID-19 vaccine at a local pharmacy or from your primary care provider.
Schedule your vaccine appointment at Lincoln Laboratory today.
Wishing you a safe and healthy flu season,
Cecilia Stuopis, MD
Chief Health Officer