Seniors Can Get RSV Vaccines this Season

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced its current director endorsed the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendations for the use of new Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccines for people ages 60 years and older.

On June 29, 2023, Director Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H., confirmed RSV vaccines would become available for the 2023 RSV season using shared clinical decision-making.

This means these individuals may receive a single dose of the U.S. FDA-approved RSV vaccines based on discussions with their healthcare provider about whether vaccination is right for them, says the CDC.

These new RSV vaccines, which are the first ones licensed in the U.S. to protect against RSV, are expected to be available in late 2023.

These vaccines provide an opportunity to help protect older adults against severe RSV illness at a time when multiple respiratory infections, such as influenza, are likely to circulate.

When to get an RSV vaccine remains a question in 2023.

The CDC reported in April 2023 that the timing of seasonal RSV epidemics (October–April) was disrupted during the recent pandemic.

The 2022–23 RSV season started later than 2021–2022 but earlier than prepandemic seasons, suggesting a return toward prepandemic seasonality.

In both the prepandemic and pandemic periods, RSV epidemics began earliest in Florida and the Southeast. As of June 24, 2023, RSV activity in Florida was low, with no outbreaks but an increased positivity rate.

And as of June 26, 2023, the World Health Organization reported RSV activity decreased to low levels in Central America and the Caribbeans while increasing in a few tropical and temperate South American countries. 

Updated RSV seasonally and vaccine development news is published by Precision Vaccinations.