Issue 1,655: September 28, 2022
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Top Stories
National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit releases "Get Adults' Vaccinations Back on Track" clinician tip sheet on 2022 CDC recommendations
The National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS) released Get Adults' Vaccinations Back on Track, a 2-page clinician tip sheet on new CDC recommendations and tools to help adults catch up on needed vaccinations. NAIIS is a large coalition of public and private organizations dedicated to increasing immunization rates, co-led by Immunize.org, CDC, and the Health and Human Services Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy.
Adult immunization rates fell drastically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now is the time to catch them up. This tip sheet can help your practice get adults back on track with vaccinations.
Related Links
Today is World Rabies Day: Are you using the rabies vaccine recommendations CDC updated in May 2022?
September 28 is World Rabies Day, a global health observance started in 2007 to raise awareness about rabies and bring together partners to enhance prevention and control efforts worldwide. While rabies is 100% preventable, globally more than 59,000 people die from it each year.
September 28 is the anniversary of the death of Louis Pasteur, the French chemist and microbiologist who developed the first rabies vaccine. Today, safe and effective animal and human vaccines are important tools, but awareness is the key driver for effective rabies prevention.
Although rabies is rare in the United States, World Rabies Day is a good reminder of the recent changes to recommendations for preexposure vaccination of people in the United States who are at risk of exposure to rabies due to travel, activity, or occupation. On May 6, 2022, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) made multiple updates to the rabies preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) recommendations, including the following:
- The 3-dose series was replaced by a 2-dose (days 0 and 7) intramuscular rabies vaccination series
- A one-time titer or booster dose was advised for persons with risk for only recognized rabies exposures
- Risk categories were redefined
- The minimum acceptable rabies antibody titer was changed to 0.5 IU/mL
Resources to encourage rabies vaccination of household pets are available from the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA).
Related Links
American College of Physicians offers resources to increase pneumococcal and influenza vaccination
The American College of Physicians (ACP) offers Practical Immunization Microlearning Resources to help clinicians stay up to date on the latest pneumococcal and influenza vaccine recommendations, learn time-saving tips to make effective vaccine recommendations, and boost vaccine confidence. The seven short, mobile-friendly videos are available on these topics:
- Practical strategies to making strong flu vaccine recommendations
- Effective communication strategies for making vaccine recommendations and building vaccine confidence
- Guidance on the new pneumococcal ACIP recommendations
You can order a free Adult Vaccination Prescription Pad listing ACIP-recommended vaccines for adults to enable easy clinician referral to vaccinating sites.
Related Links
CDC revises several passages in its General Best Practice Guidelines for Immunization, an important resource for daily use On September 12, CDC updated the list of errata/updates in its General Best Practice Guidelines for Immunization. Specific information from CDC about the recent updates appears below.
Timing and Spacing of Immunobiologics: Unknown or Uncertain Vaccination Status
Page 27: A statement is added to emphasize not performing serology to ascertain evidence of immunity (with dengue noted as an exception).
Vaccine Administration
Page 106, Figure 3: The figure was adapted to align with other CDC materials. The previous shaded area to indicate the vaccination target zone was a hexagon. CDC currently recommends the superior aspect of the vaccination target zone should be flat or lateral.
Altered Immunocompetence
Page 132: The re-administration dose of RZV should be administered 6–12 months after hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) if the transplant was allogeneic, and should be administered 3–12 months after HSCT if the transplant was autologous.
Related Links
Immunize.org updates "Communicating the Benefits of Influenza Vaccine during COVID-19" with CDC data on disease burden and vaccination coverage
Are you leading an in-service on influenza vaccination communication or just refreshing yourself on why we vaccinate? Immunize.org recently updated its Communicating the Benefits of Influenza Vaccine during COVID-19 resource for healthcare personnel. It incorporates new CDC estimates for the annual impact of influenza and the influenza vaccination rates for the 2021–22 influenza season. This resource is co-sponsored with the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM).
Related Links
Immunize.org revises "Vaccinations for Adults – You're Never Too Old to Get Vaccinated!" to incorporate new recommendations Immunize.org recently updated its Vaccinations for Adults – You're Never too Old to Get Vaccinated! resource for patients to incorporate the latest vaccination recommendations for COVID-19, universal hepatitis B, pneumococcal conjugates, and routine zoster vaccination for immunocompromised adults.
Please share this resource with patients. Trying to reduce printing costs? Patients can scan the new QR code to access the document on their mobile devices.
Related Links
Apply today! Deadlines are approaching for CDC fellowships focused on public health and workforce development.
CDC offers multiple fellowships for people interested in advancing their careers with training in specialized areas of public health. Qualification requirements vary but are not limited to healthcare professionals. Below are three fellowships that are now accepting applications. Share with colleagues and others who may be interested.
Immunize.org’s Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll recognizes 569 institutions, including five new honorees. Three previously honored institutions qualify for sustained honors.Immunize.org is pleased to announce acceptance of five new institutions into its Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll, for a total of 569 honorees. The birthing institutions are listed below with their reported hepatitis B birth dose coverage rates in parentheses.
- BayCare Mease Countryside Hospital, Safety Harbor, FL (90%)
- Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Bronx, NY (94%)
- Eskenazi Health, Indianapolis, IN (99%)
- Hendricks Regional Health, Danville, IN (100%)
- Norton County Hospital, Norton, KS (97%)
Several institutions are being recognized for qualifying for an additional year:
- Homestead Hospital, Homestead, FL (100%) (2 years)
- Kearny County Hospital, Lakin, KS (93%) (3 years)
- Scenic Mountain Medical Center, Big Spring, TX (97%) (4 years)
The Honor Roll now includes 569 birthing institutions from 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, Saipan, and a U.S. military base in England.
The Honor Roll is a key part of Immunize.org’s initiative urging the nation’s hospitals to Give Birth to the End of Hep B. Hospitals and birthing centers are recognized for attaining high coverage for hepatitis B vaccine at birth and meeting additional criteria. To learn whether your organization qualifies and to access the application form, please see Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll online.
Honorees are awarded an 8.5" x 11" color certificate suitable for printing and framing and their acceptance is announced to IZ Express’s 54,000+ readers.
Please visit the Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll web page that lists these institutions and celebrates their exceptional efforts to protect infants from perinatal hepatitis B transmission.
Related Immunize.org Resources
Spotlight: Use Immunize.org's navigation features to quickly find the resources you need In this week's Spotlight, we summarize features at Immunize.org that help you quickly find the resources you need.
Our "Favorites" tab links to 18 of the most highly visited pages on Immunize.org's content-rich website, including training materials and clinic tools. The “Favorites” tab is easy to find—it’s the first of the six blue tabs atop each Immunize.org web page. When you hover over this blue tab or select it, the Favorites main page will appear.
Our “Guide to Immunize.org” appears in the light gray section at the bottom of each web page. The alphabetized topics link you directly to Immunize.org's main pages.
Our Google search bar, which appears in the dark gray bar atop each page, will aid in searching Immunize.org content.
Our View All Materials web page offers access to all of Immunize.org's handouts for patients and staff, sortable by title, language, date, and item number.
Journalists interview Immunize.org experts Journalists seek out Immunize.org experts to help explain vaccines to the public and policy makers. We help the media understand and communicate the complex work vaccinators do. Here is one of our recent citations.
These recent articles convey the potential risks of vaccine-preventable diseases and the importance of vaccination.
Immunize.org Pages and Handouts
Reminder: Immunize.org updates its “Ask the Experts: Influenza” web page for the 2022–23 influenza season Immunize.org experts updated our popular Ask the Experts: Influenza web page to reflect the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations for influenza vaccination for the 2022–23 season.
Immunize.org’s Ask the Experts main page leads you to 30 distinct web pages on a variety of topics with more than 1,200 common or challenging questions and answers about vaccines and their administration. Immunize.org’s team of experts includes Kelly L. Moore, MD, MPH (team lead), Carolyn B. Bridges, MD, FACP, and Iyabode Beysolow, MD, MPH.
Related Links
Reminder: Immunize.org updates its “Vaccines: COVID-19” web page with information on bivalent vaccines Immunize.org updated its Vaccines: COVID-19 main page to connect you with a comprehensive list of CDC and FDA resources. We removed references to the original Pfizer-BioNTech monovalent “purple top” vaccine, which is no longer distributed (expiration September 30). The revised main page now incorporates resources for bivalent COVID-19 booster doses, recommended for all people age 12 years and older who completed a primary series, regardless of previous booster doses.
Vaccines: COVID-19 links to new resources from CDC and FDA include fact sheets, clinical considerations, vaccine administration tools, and storage and handling guidance. This page also includes a link to Immunize.org’s regularly updated print-ready checklist for current versions of U.S. COVID-19 vaccination guidance and clinic support tools.
Bookmark this page for quick access to links to key COVID-19 vaccine resource pages. We will update this page as new guidelines for COVID-19 vaccines and new CDC materials are released.
Featured Resources
American Academy of Pediatrics announces grant opportunities to increase vaccine confidence; applications due November 1
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) announced multiple grant opportunities for health organizations and AAP Chapters to improve vaccine confidence and support pediatricians in the delivery of on-time vaccinations. Several grant programs are available related to COVID-19, HPV, influenza, and other routine childhood vaccinations. Applicants are encouraged to propose activities that will address the unique needs of children and families within their communities to improve vaccination uptake.
Applications can be submitted here. They are due by November 1, 2022.
Related Links
Recognize colleagues and students with Immunize.org's elegantly designed "Vaccines Save Lives" black enamel pins
Immunize.org’s elegantly designed “Vaccines Save Lives” pins are meaningful gifts for people who care about vaccination. The pin makes a refined statement in hard black enamel with gold lettering and edges, measuring 1.125" x 0.75".
The pin is a stick-through-post variety with the back end covered by a round rubber cap that holds the pin securely. A gold metal spring-lock clasp is also provided.
Wear these pins on clothing, uniforms, and white coats to show that you value vaccines.
 
Click here for "Vaccines Save Lives" pin pricing and ordering information.
Notable Publications
“COVID-19 Vaccines—Immunity, Variants, Boosters” published in NEJM
In the September 15 issue, NEJM published COVID-19 Vaccines—Immunity, Variants, Boosters. An excerpt from the conclusions section appears below.
The Covid-19 pandemic appears to be transitioning from a hyperacute phase to an endemic phase. Current Covid-19 vaccines are less effective at blocking infection with the omicron variant than at blocking infection with prior variants, but protection against severe disease remains largely preserved. The primary goal of Covid-19 vaccines should be to provide long-term protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death. It is therefore important for studies of Covid-19 vaccines and boosters to evaluate not only short-term neutralizing antibody titers but also durability of antibody responses, memory B-cell responses, and cross-reactive T-cell responses.
Upcoming Events
Hybrid: Massachusetts Immunization Action Partnership holds “27th Annual MIAP Pediatric Immunization Skills Building Conference” in Waltham and virtually on October 25; CE available
The Massachusetts Immunization Action Partnership will hold its 27th Annual MIAP Pediatric Immunization Skills Building Conference from 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. (ET) in Waltham, MA, and virtually on October 25. This full-day, hybrid conference will provide up-to-date information on the field of pediatric immunization with an emphasis on current immunization recommendations and general immunization updates.
The in-person registration fee is $100 and virtual registration fee is $75. Register for the conference.
On-demand: CDC’s “The Pink Book” chapter webinars on vaccine-preventable diseases and best practices roll out weekly. Hepatitis B chapter now available, with CE.
CDC continues its 19-part pre-recorded webinar series to provide a chapter-by-chapter overview of the 14th edition of Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (also known as "The Pink Book").
The webinar on "Hepatitis B" was released on September 27. Thirteen webinars are now available on demand. Additional webinars will be released weekly, concluding on November 1, 2022.
No registration is required to view the sessions. Information and program details are available on CDC's Pink Book Webinars series web page.
CME, CNE, CPE, and CEU credits are available for each event. Questions about the material can be submitted to nipinfo@cdc.gov.
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