Source: CBS News
Covid-19 vaccines are now included in schedules of routinely recommended vaccines released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The immunization schedules summarize current vaccine recommendations for children, adolescents and adults, but do not set vaccine requirements for schools or workplaces. They include the addition of Covid-19 primary vaccine series and recommendations on booster dose vaccination; updated guidance on influenza and pneumococcal vaccines; and new vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) and for hepatitis B.
The schedule also recommends additional doses of MMR vaccine during a mumps outbreak and administering inactivated poliovirus vaccine in adults who are at an increased risk for exposure to the virus. According to a statment by Dr. Neil Murthy and Dr. A. Patricia Wodi said in a statement,
“This means COVID-19 vaccine is now presented as any other routinely recommended vaccine and sends a powerful message to both healthcare providers and the general public that everyone ages 6 months and older should stay up to date with recommended COVID-19 vaccines including a booster, when eligible.”
However, including Covid-19 vaccines on the routine schedule does not mean vaccination will be required by schools. School-entry vaccination requirements are determined by state or local jurisdictions.
The new recommendations also add the use of PCV15, a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine used to treat bacterial infection recently approved for use in children. Either PCV13 or the higher valent PCV15 may now be used based on the specific pediatric population.
The authors of the report include information on what to do in an outbreak of mumps. This comes amid the end of the measles outbreak in Columbus, Ohio, where all children infected were not fully vaccinated. “The vaccine for measles does not need a booster,” said Dr. William Schaffner,, member of CDC’s vaccine advisory committee. “Mumps vaccine, however, does wane in its protection. And so if there’s a mumps outbreak, then we would use MMR.”
Similarly, the new recommendations provide clear guidance on the use of an additional poliovirus vaccine if new cases emerge, such as in New York City last year. “There were lots of questions about whether an additional dose of polio vaccine was appropriate, and this just opens the door for the use of another dose of inactivated virus,” Dr. Schaffner adds.
The dip in vaccination coverage has been attributed to health care disruptions related to the Covid-19 pandemic, experts say, and health care providers are working hard to get back to and surpass pre-pandemic levels.
“Why is that a matter of concern? Because it opens up opportunities for these viruses and other germs to be reintroduced into the United States, and to cause outbreaks of disease. The recently concluded measles outbreak in Ohio is an example, the introduction of the poliovirus into New York is an example, and we need to keep our guard up,” said Schaffner.