CDC Announces 4 Vaccine Recommendations for 2024

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday released its 2024 list of recommended immunizations for adults, which includes four vaccines not previously suggested.

“This year’s schedule is particularly important because many adults are not up-to-date on recommended vaccines,” authors of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) wrote in a news release.  

COVID vaccinations are recommended again this year, but have been updated. New versions feature “both an mRNA and a protein-based adjuvanted formulation.” Pfizer and Moderna offer mRNA vaccines, which teach cells how to make a protein that triggers an immune response in the body, per the CDC. Novavax offers a protein subunit vaccine, which contains proteins of the virus that teach the body how to respond.  

All adults should get at least one dose of the updated COVID vaccine formula, the CDC recommended.

“The number of doses needed and intervals between doses may vary based on a patient’s prior vaccination history, immunocompromised status, and the vaccine product used,” they added.  

A vaccine for the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is also on the list, recommended for pregnant people “who are 32 weeks through 36 weeks gestation from September through January in most of the continental United States,” according to the release. 

People 60 and older can also get the vaccine, informed by whether the person is at risk for developing a severe case of RSV. This is determined by their risk of exposure to RSV, their preferences for getting an RSV vaccine and the “clinical discretion” of their healthcare provider, per the CDC. 

Also recommended: two doses of the mpox vaccine, recommended to all adults at increased risk of becoming infected including but not limited to men who have sex with men and have more than one partner. A new MenACWY-MenB combo vaccine to prevent meningococcal disease is also recommended. 

​​Only 40.8% of adults have received flu shots, per the CDC. COVID and RSV vaccine rates are even lower: 17.2% and 15.9%, respectively. This annual immunization schedule is an important resource for healthcare providers who are struggling to increase vaccination rates, the authors argued. 

These recommendations are just that — recommendations, not requirements. Experts highlight the need for improved communication strategies to combat increasing vaccine skepticism.

The annual ACIP recommendation list is approved by CDC director Mandy Cohen, as well as several prominent healthcare organizations: the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American College of Nurse-Midwives, the American Academy of Physician Associates, the American Pharmacist Association and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.