Recommendations Simplified for Pneumococcal Vaccination

A new policy has simplified the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) pneumococcal vaccination recommendations; the updated recommendations are published in the Jan. 28 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Noting that the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) and 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) were recommended for use in U.S. adults, with the recommendations varying by age and risk group, Miwako Kobayashi, M.D., from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues reviewed the evidence framework to develop recommendations for use of 20-valent PCV (PCV20) and 15-valent PCV (PCV15), which were licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for adults aged 18 years and older in 2021.

The authors note that ACIP simplified the recommendations for pneumococcal vaccination across age and risk groups. On Oct. 20, 2021, PCV20 alone or PCV15 in series with PPSV23 was recommended for all adults aged 65 years and older and for adults aged 19 to 64 years who have specific underlying medical conditions or other risk factors and who had not previously received a PCV.

"CDC and ACIP will continue to assess safety of PCV15 and PCV20 vaccines, monitor the impact of implementation of new recommendations, and assess postimplementation vaccine effectiveness and update pneumococcal vaccination recommendations as appropriate," the authors write.