CDC Keeps COVID Shots on Updated Childhood Immunization Schedule

Two days after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kenney Jr. announced he was making the Centers for Disease Control remove COVID vaccinations from its recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women, CDC published an updated schedule.

HHS insisted the vaccines were removed from the recommendations.

However, guidance for children only changed slightly to “recommended vaccination based on shared clinical decision-making” about COVID shots. Technically, this means the shots are still on the schedule and allows children to get the shots after consultation with a health care provider. This can be a doctor, nurse, nurse practitioner or pharmacist.

The update is not so good for pregnant women. Their section is greyed out “to reflect no guidance/recommendation,” according to CDC. The shots are still on the schedule for adults in general, and only the specific recommendation for pregnant women has been greyed out. However, if the schedule is examined online, hovering a cursor over the box brings up the recommendation to “Delay vaccination until after pregnancy if vaccine is indicated.” This is contrary to FDA advice, which is that pregnancy makes COVID high risk so vaccination should be advised.

Vaccines listed in the CDC’s schedule are required to be covered by insurance with no co-pay for patients.

A person familiar with nuances of the vaccination schedule told the media, “All this demonstrates that DHHS doesn’t understand how the vaccine schedule works.”

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