The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee voted on recommendations for 3 vaccines in recent days, according to CIDRAP. The committee recommended the use of the newly approved 5-in-1 meningococcal (groups A, B, C, W, and Y) vaccine as part of the adolescent meningococcal vaccination schedule. They also recommended that adults aged 50 to 59 years who are at increased risk of severe disease from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) receive a single dose of the vaccine—a younger age group than previously recommended for vaccination. (Previously, the RSV vaccine was recommended for all adults ages 75 and older as well as for those aged 60 to 74 years who are at increased risk of severe disease.) Additionally, the committee recommended a newly approved chikungunya vaccine for adults who are traveling to locations experiencing an outbreak.
Moving target: Vaccine recommendations can be somewhat a moving target. Most urgent cares will be plenty busy with influenza, RSV, and COVID-19 vaccines as respiratory virus season begins in the fall, so spring and summer may be the best time to suggest other vaccines for at-risk patients. Of note, there is new thinking emerging that could shift the universal recommendation for COVID-19 vaccine to a risk-based recommendation.