Last week CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) held a meeting to discuss changes to the vaccination policies for chickenpox, COVID-19, and Hepatitis B.
The committee made three key recommendations:
- That toddlers through age three be immunized for chickenpox (varicella/V) through standalone vaccination rather than through the combination measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine. The two vaccines (MMR and V) can continue to be given as two separate vaccines to children. HHS stated that it will examine all insurance coverage implications prior to a final decision on adoption by the Acting Director.
- That the vaccination for COVID-19 be determined by “individual decision-making” for all individuals six months and older; that is, they are to be based on shared clinical decision-making, which references providers including physicians, nurses, and pharmacists. The recommendation emphasized that the risk-benefit of vaccination in individuals under age 65 is most favorable for those who are at an increased risk for severe COVID-19 and lowest for individuals who are not at an increased risk.
- While postponing a decision on possible changes in the vaccine schedule for hepatitis B that is typically given to all newborns, ACIP voted to recommend that all pregnant women be tested for hepatitis B.
Recommendations from ACIP become part of the CDC immunization schedule if it is adopted by the CDC director.
COVID Risk Matrix:
Influenza:
Public Health News:
- An outbreak of Vibrio vulnificus linked to beaches and seafood in Florida and Louisiana has caused at least 5 deaths and dozens of cases, most of which have been hospitalized. Case numbers are higher this year than in the recent past. This organism persists in warm brackish or salt water and can infect people via consuming seafood harvested from these waters or infecting flesh wounds.
- Four people from 4 geographically distinct areas of Bangladesh have died of Nipah virus infections this year. This is a zoonotic disease transmitted to humans through infected animals (such as bats or pigs), or food contaminated with saliva, urine, and waste products of infected animals, and direct human-to-human transmission can also occur. Since surveillance began in 2001, 347 cases have been reported, and a case fatality rate of 71% has been noted.
- As of September 17, 48 cases (38 confirmed, 10 probable) of Ebola virus disease have been reported by the WHO from the Kasai Province, in the DRC. 31 deaths have been reported for a case fatality ratio among all cases of 64.6%.
- Cases of cholera, caused by Vibrio cholerae, were up in 2024, per a report just published by the WHO. Cases were reported in 60 countries concentrated in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, and increased by 5% over the previous years. The 6,000 deaths attributable to cholera represent an increase of 50%. Conflict, climate change, population displacement, and long-term deficiencies in water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure all contributed to the increases.
- The vaccine advisory panel for the CDC rejected its working group’s proposal to require a doctor’s prescription for the COVID vaccine for all ages. The panel recommended clearer risk communication and more patient-provider discussions when COVID vaccines are discussed. Additionally, the panel voted to postpone a vote on delaying the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine. A reversal was also made regarding the MMRV vaccine to remove the vaccine from the federal program that provides free vaccines to uninsured and underinsured children younger than 4.
