On November 13, CDC posted a Federal Register Notice revising the vaccination criteria for U.S. immigration. The new criteria will be in effect as of December 14. As of that date, human papillomavirus (HPV) and zoster vaccination will not be required for immigrants.

To access information about the new vaccination criteria and links to the Federal Register Notice, a related fact sheet, and frequently asked questions, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/laws_regs/fed_reg/vaccine/revised-vaccination-immigration.htm

On November 16, CDC's Health Alert Network (HAN) issued a Health Advisory titled "Pneumococcal Vaccination Recommended to Help Prevent Secondary Infections." The advisory summarizes the ACIP pneumococcal recommendations, explains that CDC is receiving reports of greater-than-expected numbers of cases of invasive pneumococcal disease coincident with increases in influenza-associated hospitalizations, and provides links to numerous resources.

To access the HAN Health Advisory, go to:
http://www2a.cdc.gov/HAN/ArchiveSys/ViewMsgV.asp?AlertNum=00301

Google Inc. recently launched a flu vaccine locator service, based on its popular Google Maps feature. Patients looking for a provider with a supply of seasonal or H1N1 influenza vaccine can search for sites close to the address they enter on the flu vaccine locator web page.

To access the Google Flu Shot Finder, go to:
http://www.google.com/flushot

Google worked with CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop this valuable resource. If you would like to promote Google's flu vaccine locator on your website, go to CDC's social media web section to get widgets (i.e., images to post on your website). You'll find them at the following link, under the subhead titled Available Widgets: http://www.flu.gov/news/socialmedia

CDC recently updated its H1N1 web section with the following guidance:

Updated Guidance for the Use of CSL 2009 H1N1 Monovalent Vaccine
The guidance provides background information on FDA's recent expansion of the approved use of CSL's seasonal and 2009 H1N1 monovalent influenza vaccines to include children ages 6 months and older; the guidance also includes information on presentation and dosing. http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1flu/vaccination/csl_guidance.html

CDC's H1N1 Flu web section contains hundreds of documents for healthcare professionals and the public. To access the web section's home page, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu

To make it easy for you to keep up to date with developments, IAC has gathered important information related to H1N1 influenza into a single web section. To access this resource, go to: http://www.immunize.org/h1n1

On November 18, the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) issued a position statement supporting mandatory influenza vaccinations for healthcare workers (HCWs). The statement was added to IAC's Honor Roll for Patient Safety, as were the names of two medical practices. The honor roll recognizes medical practices, hospitals, professional organizations, and government entities that have taken a stand for patient safety by strengthening mandatory influenza vaccination policies for healthcare workers.

NPSF issued a press release regarding its position statement. To access it, go to:
http://www.npsf.org/pr/pressrel/2009-11-18.php

The two medical practices newly enrolled in IAC's Honor Roll for Patient Safety are Pharr Pediatric Clinic, Pharr, TX, and Priority Care Pediatrics, Kansas City, MO. The addition of these two practices brings the total number of enrolled hospitals, health systems, and medical practices to 32.

For comprehensive information on IAC's Honor Roll for Patient Safety, or to apply, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/laws/influenzahcw.asp

CDC published "Mumps Outbreak--New York, New Jersey, Quebec, 2009" in the November 20 issue of MMWR. Previously, the article was available as an MMWR Dispatch (published November 12).

To access a web-text (HTML) version of the complete article, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5845a5.htm

IAC encourages IAC Express readers to investigate a collection of 30-second influenza-related public service announcements (PSAs) offered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Members of Congress and state governors have recorded audio and video PSAs that deliver the message that there are simple steps that every person can take to reduce the risk of contracting seasonal or 2009 H1N1 influenza.

All PSAs are available in English, with some available in Spanish as well. All videos are available in formats that can be embedded through YouTube or added to websites. Audio files are appropriate for radio broadcast.

The audio and video PSAs can be accessed at http://www.flu.gov/psa/psacongress.html

The link to this HHS web section will be available on the home page of IAC's website through November 29. To access it, go to: http://www.immunize.org and click on the image under the words Video of the Week.

Remember to bookmark IAC's home page to view a new video every Monday. To view an IAC Video of the Week from the past, go to the video archive at http://www.immunize.org/votw

IAC recently revised two of its Q&A patient-education print pieces: "Hepatitis A: Questions & Answers" and "Mumps: Questions and Answers." The hepatitis A piece was updated to incorporate new vaccination recommendations regarding contacts of international adoptees; the mumps piece received minor edits, including a change to the answer about the length of the infectious period.

To access the revised ready-to-print (PDF) print piece "Hepatitis A: Questions and Answers," go to:
http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4204.pdf

To access the revised ready-to-print (PDF) print piece "Mumps: Questions and Answers," go to:
http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4211.pdf

To access Q&As about other diseases and vaccines in ready-to-print (PDF) format, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/printmaterials/questions.asp

Dated 10/2/09, the VISs for 2009 H1N1 inactivated influenza vaccine (injectable) and 2009 H1N1 live attenuated influenza vaccine (nasal spray) are now available in Farsi (spoken in Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain), German, Japanese, Romanian, and Thai. IAC gratefully acknowledges the Asian Pacific Health Care Venture for the Thai translations, and the California Department of Public Health, Immunization Branch, for the remaining translations.

VISs FOR THE INJECTABLE 2009 H1N1 INFLUENZA VACCINE

To access the new translations (Farsi, German, Japanese, Romanian, and Thai), of the VIS for the injectable 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine, as well as this VIS in English and other translations, go to: http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_h1n1_inactive.asp Click on the pertinent languages.

VISs FOR THE NASAL-SPRAY 2009 H1N1 INFLUENZA VACCINE

To access the new translations (Farsi, German, Japanese, Romanian, and Thai), of the VIS for the nasal-spray 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine, as well as this VIS in English and other translations, go to: http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_h1n1_live.asp Click on the pertinent languages.

For information about the use of VISs, and for VISs in more than 35 languages, visit IAC's VIS web section at http://www.immunize.org/vis

For general information about VISs from CDC's website go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis