Vaccinate Your Family releases its "2023 Annual Report" and its "2024 State of the ImmUnion Report" on vaccine-preventable diseases
Vaccinate Your Family (VYF) released its 2023 Annual Report highlighting the programs and partnerships that build a culture of immunization. Last year marked 30 years since the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program was authorized. This year’s report reflects on the 1 million lives saved in the United States thanks to childhood vaccines and proposes a roadmap back to a culture of immunization based on collaboration.
VYF also released its 8th annual State of the ImmUnion Report. The primary audience for this report is Congress. In 2023, exemptions to childhood vaccinations reached an all-time high in the United States, and adult vaccination rates continued to struggle, particularly among Black, Latino, and Hispanic adults. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of uninsured children who did not receive vaccines doubled from 3% to 6%. Too many people have lost faith in the public health system and some now skip vaccines. VYF’s "2024 State of the ImmUnion Report"describes the ongoing challenges our nation faces and the policies that can increase vaccination rates and promote public safety.
Influenza-like illness activity remains elevated nationally but is decreasing; it's not too late to vaccinate
For week 13, ending March 30, CDC’s Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report, FluView shows that six jurisdictions experienced high activity. Nationwide, 3.0% of patient visits reported through the Outpatient Influenza-Like Illness Surveillance Network (ILINet) were due to respiratory illness that included fever plus a cough or sore throat (i.e., ILI). The national baseline is 2.9%. Seven pediatric influenza-associated deaths were reported this week, bringing the total to 133 children who died of influenza thus far during the 2023–24 season.
Influenza Vaccination
CDC recommends everyone age 6 months and older get annual influenza vaccination. Influenza and other vaccines (including COVID-19 and pneumococcal vaccines) may be given at the same visit, if indicated. Infants age 6 months and older may receive influenza and COVID-19 vaccines at the same visit.
Locate influenza and COVID-19 vaccines in your area by entering your zip code in the VaccineFinder on Vaccines.gov or Vacunas.gov. To be listed as a provider by VaccineFinder, see the information on this website.
“Can COVID-19 Vaccination Lead to Fertility Problems?” Watch the 1-minute answer, part of the Ask the Experts Video Series on YouTube.
This week, our featured episode from the Ask the Experts Video Series is Can COVID-19 Vaccination Lead to Fertility Problems? The video briefly highlights that there's currently no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines or other vaccines cause fertility problems.
The 1-minute video is available on our YouTube channel, along with our full collection of quick video answers to popular Ask the Experts questions.
Like, follow, and share Immunize.org’s social media accounts and encourage colleagues and others interested in vaccination to do likewise:
We make it easy for you to find official publications related to vaccines. We provide direct links to important FDA resources, including vaccine package inserts, EUA Fact Sheets, product approvals, and related content. The page is sorted alphabetically by vaccine, or you can use the Vaccine or Disease Name filter to bring you directly to a specific vaccine.
Access package inserts on the Official Guidance menu by selecting FDA, then Package Inserts & EUAs from the lefthand list.
When you select the WHO option on the Official Guidance lefthand list, you’ll go to the WHO Position Papers, Resources, and Publications web page. This page links to current vaccine-specific and general immunization position papers published by WHO. Also included are links to major WHO publications (Bulletin of the World Health Organization and Weekly Epidemiological Record).
Recap: Immunize.org updated these clinical resources in February and March
IZ Express regularly provides readers with information about Immunize.org’s new and updated educational materials for healthcare professionals and handouts for patients. All Immunize.org clinical resources are free to distribute.
We’ve been busy! In case you missed them during recent weeks, updates were made to these helpful materials:
While the schedules are available online from CDC at no cost, Immunize.org’s printed, laminated booklets are ideal for use in any busy healthcare setting where vaccinations are given.
Durable: their tough coating can be wiped down, and they’re durable enough to stand up to a year's worth of use
Format: each schedule is produced in a 16-page, 8.5” X 11” booklet format; with color coding for easy reading, our laminated schedules replicate the original CDC formatting, including all tables and notes
Easy access to CDC updates: CDC added an online addendum page to the schedule, where new recommendations from ACIP made during 2024 can be posted. The laminated schedule addendum pages include custom QR codes you can scan to view or print the current CDC addendum from CDC's website, as needed.
Adult schedule bonus content: the adult schedule includes a bonus page with Immunize.org’s popular 1-page handout summarizing the dose, route, and needle size recommendations for all vaccines and recipients
Pricing
1 copy: $10.00
2–4 copies: $9.50 each
5–19 copies: $8.50 each
20–99 copies: $7.50 each
100–499 copies: $6.00 each
500–999 copies: $5.00 each
1,000–1,999 copies: $4.00 each
2,000+ copies: $3.25 each
Confident recommendations for influenza vaccine from healthcare providers are powerfully persuasive. To assist you in maximizing protection for your patients, Immunize.org, in collaboration with CSL Seqirus, updated the 65+ Flu Defense website.
Older adults are at increased risk of severe influenza and COVID-19 illness, including hospitalization and death, especially if they are not up to date on these vaccinations. An updated fact sheet on the website, The Importance of Preventing Influenza and COVID-19,offers responses to help guide discussions with patients on the importance of preventing influenza and COVID-19.
This helpful site includes information, tools, and tips for communicating with adults age 65 and older about the scope and severity of influenza. Resources include:
People benefit from a personal copy of their immunization records. Immunize.org offers adult and lifetime immunization record cards you can provide your patients.
Immunize.org's personal immunization record cards, printed on rip-proof, smudge-proof, water-proof paper, are designed to last a lifetime. They fit in a wallet when folded. The record cards are for you to give to your patients as a permanent personal vaccination record and are sold in boxes of 250.
The child/teen immunization record cards have been discontinued due to low demand and greater use of immunization information systems for young children.
Make bulk purchases and receive quantity discounts. For quotes on larger quantities or customizing, or to request sample cards, call 651-647-9009 or email admininfo@immunize.org.
“Federal Retail Pharmacy Program Contributions to Bivalent mRNA COVID Vaccinations across Sociodemographic Characteristics—United States, September 1, 2022–September 30, 2023” published in MMWR
Pharmacies participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program (FRPP) served as integral partners in national efforts to scale up vaccination capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency response. . . .
Among 59.8 million COVID-19 bivalent vaccine doses administered in the United States during September 1, 2022–September 30, 2023, 40.5 million (67.7%) were administered by FRPP partners. In urban and rural areas, FRPP partners administered 81.6% and 60.0% of bivalent vaccine doses, respectively. . . .
FRPP partnerships were critical in ensuring access to bivalent COVID-19 vaccination services in the United States and could serve as a model to address vaccination services needs for routine vaccines and during future responses to vaccine-preventable disease emergencies.
“Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine Uptake among United States Adults, Aged 27–45 Years” published in Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
There was low self-reported prevalence of HPV vaccination uptake (15.5% of the study sample) among all adults ages 27–45 years, regardless of race/ethnicity
After adjusting for race/ethnicity and other potential confounding factors, women had more than three times the odds of vaccine initiation compared to men
Compared to Non-Hispanic White adults between 27 and 45 years, Non-Hispanic Black adults were more likely to be vaccinated against HPV after adjusting for potential confounders, while Hispanic adults were less likely to be vaccinated
Adults with a regular place of healthcare had greater odds of receiving the HPV vaccine compared to adults without one
The authors concluded that, given HPV vaccine’s importance in cancer prevention, it is critical to mitigate low overall rates and disparities.
The primary means for detecting poliovirus is through surveillance for acute flaccid paralysis (AFP), supplemented by environmental surveillance of sewage samples. . . .
During 2022–2023, among 28 priority countries experiencing or at high risk for poliovirus transmission, 20 (71.4%) met national AFP surveillance indicator targets, and the number of environmental surveillance sites in priority countries increased. However, substantial national and subnational AFP surveillance gaps persist. . . .
Maintaining high-quality surveillance is critical to achieving the goal of global polio eradication. Monitoring surveillance indicators is important to identifying gaps and guiding surveillance strengthening activities, particularly in countries at high risk for poliovirus circulation.
Virtual: Registration open for NFID’s “2024 Annual Conference on Vaccinology Research” on May 8–10; CME credit offered
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) will host its live virtual 2024 Annual Conference on Vaccinology Research (ACVR) on May 8–10. The conference brings together disciplines involved in vaccine research, development, implementation, and real-world evaluation.
Registration is now open and there is a $500 fee to attend. NFID will offer CME for the live online activity. Visit the ACVR website for updates and additional information.
In-person: Registration open for CDC’s “National Immunization Conference 2024” on August 12–14 in Atlanta; abstract deadline April 19; CE credit offered
CDC will host its National Immunization Conference 2024 (NIC) on August 12–14 in Atlanta, GA. Program content will cover science, policy, education, and implementation issues related to immunization and vaccine-preventable diseases. The conference will feature dynamic speakers from a range of backgrounds and experiences, offering continuing education for a variety of professions.
IZ Express is supported in part by Grant No. NH23IP922654 from CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Its contents are solely the responsibility of Immunize.org and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC.
