Despite inefficiency of the flu vaccines this year in the U.S., the five companies manufacturing influenza vaccines plan to make a record number of doses for the next flu season. Therefore, they announced at least 143 million doses for the 2008-2009 season, meaning 3 million more doses than the season just ended this month.

It is rather inexplicable, as the request for flu vaccines is very likely to fall after this year’s vaccines were only 44 percent effective against the flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report last month.

It seems that two of the three strains, against which the vaccines should have worked, were not good matches. Therefore, people who were not protected against flu this year are very likely to distrust the vaccine’s efficiency in the upcoming season. That’s why flu vaccine manufacturers’ decision to boost the number of doses for next year flu season is rather inexplicable.

Still, CSL Biotherapies will triple its production to 6 million doses from 2 million; Sanofi Pasteur Inc. is planning to make 50 million; Novartis Vaccines, 40 million; GlaxoSmithKline PLC, 35 million to 38 million; and MedImmune Vaccines Ins , about 12 million doses, the Associated Press reports.

Health experts will discuss the 2008-2009 flu season next week in Atlanta at a national influenza vaccine summit hosted by the CDC and the American Medical Association.

Influenza is a serious disease and people of any age can get it. Every year, the flu causes 36,000 deaths (mostly among those aged 65 years or older) and more than 200,000 hospitalizations in the U.S.