What you need to know during National Immunization Awareness Month

Every August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlights the importance of vaccination for people of all ages. This year, it’s more important than ever to stay up to date on routine immunizations—and understand the implications for not getting them.

Due to lockdowns and resources diverted to the coronavirus response, we’ve seen “fresh explosions of illness and death from other diseases—ones that are readily prevented by vaccines,” The New York Times reported earlier this summer. 

As a result, we’ve seen surges in preventable illnesses around the world, including diphtheria, cholera, measles, tuberculosis, and poliovirus in dozens of countries, the report continued. 

In the U.S., demand for some vaccines plummeted as much as 95%,according to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID)—which is bad news as the pandemic continues to rage on ahead of flu season.

While COVID-19 certainly played a role,U.S. vaccination rates were falling even before the pandemic—and the United States almost lost its measles elimination status in 2019. 

But pandemic or not, routine vaccinations are safe—and it’s critically important that children and adults catch up on vaccines now. 

To increase awareness and access, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is ensuring parents are aware of the importance of vaccinations and COVID-19 safety precautions at providers’ offices. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) urges parents to find out about what safety procedures are in place at their practice and to make an appointment for routine immunizations—which is good advice for adults too. This week, HHS also issued an emergency directive allowing pharmacists in all 50 states to give childhood vaccinations, reported NBC News.

HHS has offered a number of ways for people to get involved—and spread the word about catching up on routine immunizations.

Don’t forget! Make a plan to get your flu vaccine in the fall, so we can all do our part to make sure our loved ones are protected, and help ensure health care systems aren’t overwhelmed during the flu season and the ongoing pandemic.

Vaccines are vital for protecting public health. “Infectious diseases are global and they don’t care about boundaries and borders, everyone is affected from childhood all the way through seniors,” as Phyllis Arthur, BIO’s VP of Infectious Diseases and Diagnostics Policy recently said.

More Health Care News:

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Peter Marks “has vowed to resign if the Trump administration approves a vaccine before it is shown to be safe and effective,” says a Reuters exclusive.