The CDC's vaccine advisory committee just wrapped up two days of meetings and the decisions could impact how your family gets vaccinated. To help break down what changed and what didn't, News On 6's MaKayla Glenn spoke with Dr. Mandy Griffin, a pediatrician at Utica Park Clinic in Tulsa.
The CDC's vaccine advisory committee just wrapped up two days of meetings, and the decisions could impact how your family gets vaccinated.
Dr. Mandy Griffin, a pediatrician at Utica Park Clinic in Tulsa, breaks down what changed and what didn't.
"The purpose of the meetings these past two days were to talk about three different vaccines," Dr. Mandy Griffin said.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, met to vote on key recommendations for the MMRV combination vaccine, the hepatitis B vaccine at birth, and COVID-19 vaccination guidelines.
The committee voted to no longer recommend the MMRV combination vaccine for children under age 4. Instead, children will now receive two separate shots: one for MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) and one for varicella (chickenpox).
"Previously, we were allowed to offer both to parents and let them choose. At this point, they have recommended against that and actually recommended against funding that for patients with Medicaid, no insurance, or those covered by the Vaccines for Children program," Griffin said.
This means families on these programs will likely no longer have access to the single combination shot -- only the individual vaccines.
"Since we started giving it universally in 1991, we've seen cases in childhood drop from 18,000 a year down to 100 or fewer. When contracted at birth, about 90% of children go on to have chronic hepatitis B, which can cause liver failure and liver cancer," Griffin said.
"In summary, they recommend that everybody discuss with their doctor if it's right for you," Griffin said.
Under the new recommendation:
You do not need a prescription to get the shot, but providers are encouraged to counsel patients about whether the vaccine is appropriate for them.
Not yet. The recommendations still need approval from the Acting CDC Director before they become official policy.
Dr. Griffin reassures families that the safety data hasn't changed.