The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine recommendations committee on Friday wrapped two days’ worth of meetings that involved votes on a range of recommendations regarding COVID-19, measles and more.
The recommendations committee, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, has undergone changes in recent months, with all new members picked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The ACIP’s recommendations are not the final say — they must be reviewed and approved by the CDC director to become official guidance, but CDC directors have almost always accepted the recommendations.
Here are the key takeaways from the meetings.
The panel voted Thursday to change a recommendation on the combined measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMRV) vaccine, instead supporting separate MMR and varicella shots for those under the age of 4.
The combined MMRV vaccine offers the convenience of one shot instead of two, but it does carry a slightly higher risk of fever-related “febrile” seizures when used as the first dose in young toddlers aged 12-23 months, according to CBS News medical contributor Dr. Céline Gounder. The side effect is most common between the ages of 14-18 months. As Gounder explains, febrile seizures are rare and almost always resolve without lasting effects, but are frightening for families and can erode trust in vaccines.
By contrast, studies show there is no elevated risk when MMRV is given for the second dose at ages 4 to 6 years old, after children have outgrown the highest-risk window.
In a change from current guidance, which states that the CDC recommends a 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine for most adults ages 18 and older, the committee voted on Friday for people to make individual, informed decisions about COVID vaccination, declining to specifically recommend vaccination.
The updated recommendations would include the following:
There were also multiple votes related to how potential COVID vaccination risks should be communicated to patients. Members both recommended that the CDC update its language regarding potential risks as well as recommended that health care providers communicate risks with their patients on an individual level.
In a close vote, the committee decided against a recommendation about requiring a prescription for COVID-19 vaccination. With a vote of 6 yes and 6 no, the decision went to the ACIP chair, who voted no.
After discussions on hepatitis B on Thursday, the votes were pushed to Friday, where members first voted unanimously in favor of having all pregnant women tested for hepatitis B infection.
For the second vote — which was meant to focus on whether to change the pediatric vaccine schedule of the universal birth dose for children of mothers who test negative for hepatitis B — the ACIP members voted to table it to a later time after much discussion.
