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Registration is open for the 2025 Kansas Immunization Conference, a 1-day event on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at the Wichita Marriott. The conference aims to bring together immunization professionals for learning, collaboration and networking.
The CDC will not present its Pink Book Series at this year's conference due to unforeseen circumstances. Additional agenda and speaker details will be shared soon.
Kansas Vaccines for Children (VFC) and Vaccines for Adults (VFA) providers must recertify annually. The recertification period is April 14-May 2, 2025. The primary or backup VFC/VFA contact or signing physician (medical director) completes the electronic recertification in KSWebIZ. The process includes reviewing staff information, updating patient counts, reviewing program requirements and signing the agreement. Instructions were in the April 9 issue of What's Happening Wednesday. Contact your Regional Immunization Nurse or Nurse On-Call at 877-296-0464 for questions.
Additional resources:
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) will discontinue its COVID-19 ordering site on Shopify at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 7, 2025.
Starting then, Vaccines for Children (VFC) COVID-19 vaccine providers must order directly through KSWEBIZ. Providers requesting 317 and Vaccines for Adults (VFA) vaccines should submit requests via email.
Vaccine orders will continue to be processed weekly. Contact your Regional Immunization Nurse or reach KDHE by email for questions.
On April 21, 2025, KDHE issued a KS-HAN to providers and local health departments of the updated measles vaccine guidance to counties with confirmed measles cases and bordering counties.
For Kansas counties with confirmed measles cases and their bordering counties:
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Infants 6 months through 11 months should receive an early dose of MMR vaccine. This early dose is for protection from measles and does not count as a valid dose for school entry.
- Infants who receive an early dose of MMR will receive a total of 3 doses.
- Subsequent doses should follow CDC’s recommended childhood schedule:
- Second dose at 12 through 15 months of age.
- Final dose at 4 through 6 years of age.
The early vaccination guidance is for MMR vaccine only and does not include MMRV, which contains varicella. The MMRV vaccine is not approved for infants younger than 12 months.
Further measles outbreak vaccination guidance can be found in the April 9, 2025, issue of What's Happening Wednesday.
If a provider has depleted VFC stock of MMR vaccine and is need of additional doses outside of the normal ordering window, please email us.
Any further questions or concerns, please reach out to your Regional Immunization Nurse or the Nurse On-Call at 877-296-0464.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) and several local health departments are working together in response to a measles outbreak in southwest Kansas. As of April 23, a total of 37 cases have been reported in eight different counties. Due to the highly contagious nature of measles, additional cases are likely to occur in the outbreak area in Kansas and in surrounding counties, especially among those that are unvaccinated.
KDHE has updated our measles webpage (kdhe.ks.gov/Measles) to serve as the central resource hub for all Kansas measles-related information. As part of this update, KDHE has also launched the 2025 Kansas Measles Outbreak Dashboard which provides up-to-date data on the current measles outbreak, including the number of cases by county, hospitalizations, deaths, cases by age group, and vaccination status among cases. The dashboard will be updated every Wednesday and can be accessed through the measles webpage.
For the public, the kdhe.ks.gov/measles page includes details on signs and symptoms, frequently asked questions, tools for checking immunization records, and more.
For health care providers and local health departments, the webpage offers essential resources, including disease reporting requirements for suspected cases, a rapid measles assessment form to evaluate potential risks and other critical guidance.
National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW) is April 21-28, 2025, highlighting the importance of protecting children two years and younger from vaccine-preventable diseases. Routine vaccination and well-child appointments are crucial for keeping young children healthy. On-time vaccination offers protection against potentially life-threatening diseases.
Amid rising misinformation and the resurgence of preventable diseases like measles, reinforcing the importance and safety of vaccination is critical.
Vaccinate Your Family's #VaxToTheFuture campaign is a bilingual effort promoting a childhood free from vaccine-preventable diseases through vaccination.
The #VaxToTheFuture Sharing Toolkit includes social media graphics, pre-drafted posts and links to vaccine safety resources. Use the #VaxToTheFuture hashtag and tag @vaccinateyourfamily and KDHE when sharing on social media.
For the week ending April 12, Influenza-Like Illness Surveillance Network (ILINet) sites reported 1% of patient visits were due to influenza-like illness (ILI), defined as a fever greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit and a cough or sore throat.
Syndromic surveillance showed 1% of emergency department visits in Kansas were due to ILI. State influenza activity is currently low.
During the same week, the Kansas Health and Environmental Laboratories reported one positive influenza A/H1 specimen and no positive influenza A/H3 specimens.
Outbreaks of any disease should be reported to the epidemiology hotline at 877-427-7317.Stay updated on influenza activity.
A free, in-person 340B University will be held in Kansas City on May 28, 2025. All individuals involved in the 340B program are welcome to attend; participants are responsible for their own transportation.
Attendance at the 340B Grantees Spring Conference, which follows the training and has a registration fee, is not required.
Space is limited. Enroll here to attend the university.
Sub-grantees of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) must recertify for the 340B program between May 5 and June 2, 2025.
Authorizing Officials should receive an email from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) regarding recertification. Before recertifying, Authorizing Officials (AOs) and Primary Contacts (PCs) must create individual user accounts in the 340B Office of Pharmacy Affairs Information System (340B OPAIS). Shared access is not permitted. Failure to create accounts will prevent viewing accounts and completing recertification, leading to termination from the program. All active 340B IDs linked to an AO's account must be updated by the deadline to avoid termination.
For recertification assistance, contact Rachael South, 340B Program Administrator, at 785-296-0866 or by email. For OPAIS account help, contact Apexus at 888-340-2787.
Click here to view the shipping calendar for the months of May and June.
Register here for Role of Infection Preventionists (IPs) which will be held April 24, 2025, at 11 a.m. CST
Register here for Bridging the Gap: Lessons Learned from Integrating STI & Harm Reduction Services which will be held April 28, 2025, at noon CST
Register here for STI Clinical Update Webinar-Congenital Syphilis Scenarios: A case-based overview which will be held April 28, 2025, at 2 p.m. CST
Check out our full trainings list.
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