 📌 Respiratory Illness Vaccines
In late June, CDC announced recommendations for respiratory illness vaccinations.Â
InfluenzaÂ
- Everyone aged six months and older, with rare exceptions, should receive an updated 2024–2025 influenza vaccine.
- Updated 2024–2025 flu vaccines will be trivalent and protect against an H1N1, H3N2 and a B/Victoria lineage virus.
- High-dose inactivated (HD-IIV3) and adjuvanted inactivated (aIIV3) influenza vaccines are acceptable options for influenza vaccination in solid organ transplant recipients.
COVID-19Â
- Everyone aged 6 months and older is eligible to receive an updated 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccine.
- This vaccine will target the KP.2 variant and will be available sometime in August or September.
RSVÂ
- Everyone aged 75 years and older should receive an RSV vaccine.
- People aged 60–74 years who are at increased risk of severe RSV (have certain chronic medical conditions, such as lung or heart disease, or live in nursing homes) should receive an RSV vaccine.
Providers are encouraged to begin their vaccination planning efforts now and to vaccinate patients as indicated and when updated vaccines are available. For more information, visit:Â
📌 Take Action to Get Routine Vaccinations Back on ScheduleÂ
CDC recently announced a new vaccine initiative. The Let’s RISE Initiative (Routine Immunizations on Schedule for Everyone) is an initiative to provide strategies and resources to help get people back on schedule with their immunizations. For more information, please see CDC’s RISE website.Â
📌 Mpox Vaccine CommercializationÂ
The mpox vaccine, JYNNEOS, has started transitioning to the commercial market. Providers should order JYNNEOS through their typical vaccine wholesaler.
- Existing mpox vaccine providers enrolled in the Health Partner Ordering Portal (HPOP): ad hoc requests for JYNNEOS may be made until July 30, 2024, at 12 p.m. ET through HPOP and may be approved on a case-by-case basis.
- Providers are prohibited from billing the cost of the vaccine for federal government-supplied JYNNEOS but can bill for the cost of administration.
For questions, please email pharmacy@vdh.virginia.gov.
📌 JYNNEOS Standing OrderÂ
CDC issued Standing Orders for Administering JYNNEOS (Mpox) Vaccine by Subcutaneous Injection to Persons 18 Years of Age and Older, which replaces the previous recommendations for routine use of mpox vaccine in people aged 18 years and older at risk of exposure to mpox.Â
- It addresses subcutaneous administration of the JYNNEOS vaccine series.
- It does not address the alternative intradermal route that was authorized when JYNNEOS was in short supply, which is no longer routinely recommended.
As a reminder, JYNNEOS may still be administered by subcutaneous injection to children and adolescents under 18 years of age determined to be at high risk for mpox under the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) issued by the US Food and Drug Administration. For more information, visit the VDH Mpox Healthcare Provider Vaccine website. Â
📌 New Statewide Sickle Cell Disease Registry
On April 4, 2024, Governor Glenn Youngkin signed into law HB 252, which mandates the creation of a statewide registry for sickle cell disease, including the collection of disease case information. The law has been enacted as Chapter 437 of the 2024 Acts of Assembly. Â
The statewide registry of sickle cell patients will be maintained by the Virginia State Health Commissioner.
Hospitals, clinics, laboratories, and physicians should wait for further outreach from VDH to begin collecting this data. Clinicians interested in staying updated on the registry can fill out this form to join the outreach list. Â
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