News: Rates for five childhood vaccines declined in recent years, CDC says

Vaccine coverage by age two remained largely stable between kids born in 2021–2022 and 2019–2020, though decreases were observed for five vaccines and in certain demographic groups during more recent years, a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report found.

The largest difference in estimated vaccine coverage between the two groups was a 7.4% decrease in coverage with two or more doses of the influenza vaccine—decreasing from 61% to 53.3%.

Other declines in coverage were seen in the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine, which fell from 81.1% to 79.3%, the rotavirus vaccine from 75.8% to 74.2%, four or more doses of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine from 82% to 80.5%, and the primary series of the Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccine, from 92.6% to 91.6%.

For children born between 2021–2022, coverage was also lower among those eligible for the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program compared to those who were not. Coverage was also lower for Black or African American and Hispanic or Latino children compared to white and Asian children and was also lower among children living in poverty and in rural areas.

Data for this study were collected in 2024, when United States recommendations included routine vaccines and a monoclonal antibody to protect against 16 diseases among children by age two. Since then, the CDC, under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., reduced the total number of universally recommended vaccines in childhood from 17 to 11, which contradicted the advice of public health experts. The impact of this reduction on vaccine coverage has yet to be seen.

“Vaccines have substantially reduced severe illness, hospitalization, and death and have saved approximately $2.7 trillion in societal costs," the authors wrote. "Although national vaccination coverage remained stable for most vaccines, lower coverage among certain population subgroups and in some jurisdictions is creating an increased risk for outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.”

"Because national and state data might obscure what is happening locally, state and local health departments are encouraged to analyze data from their immunization information systems to identify opportunities for increased attention and intervention," the authors noted.

Making efforts to “improve and maintain high levels of vaccination coverage could help reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with vaccine-preventable diseases,” the report detailed. The CDC’s Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends interventions such as the use of standing vaccination orders, immunization information systems, and vaccination programs in organized childcare centers as well as Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Woman, Infants, and Children settings. Additionally, strong provider recommendations, messaging from credible and trusted sources, and increased participation in the VFC program have proven to be effective.

Editor’s note: To read the full study, click here. To read additional coverage of this study from MedPage Today, click here.