CDC Advisory Committee Updates Immunization Schedules

The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recently voted to update the 2023 child and adult immunization schedules, including “incorporating additional information for approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccines.”  The ACIP did not make any changes to its COVID-19 vaccine recommendations  – the updates will “simply help streamline clinical guidance for healthcare providers by including all currently licensed, authorized and routinely recommended vaccines in one document.”  The updated immunization schedules and guidance will be published in early 2023.  The ACIP is composed on medical and public health experts who develop recommendations that “stand as public health guidance for safe use of vaccines and related biological products” in the United States.  CDC makes recommendations on vaccine use, but state or local jurisdictions determine school-entry vaccination requirements.  For example, the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) provides guidance on immunizations, including the Ohio Immunization Summary for School Attendance chart and more detailed information in the ODH Director’s Journal Entry on “Approved Means of Immunization Pursuant to Sections 3701.13 and 3313.671 of the Ohio Revised Code.”