Oct. 24, 2024 – People ages 50 to 64 have a new annual vaccine to consider adding to this fall’s roster.
The CDC now says everyone 50 to 64 years old should get a pneumococcal vaccine to help protect against serious illnesses like pneumonia, meningitis, and bloodstream infections. They are caused by an infection called pneumococcal disease that stems from a bacteria called Streptococcus pneumoniae. (It’s also called pneumococcus.)
The CDC’s independent expert advisory panel made the expanded recommendation on Wednesday, and CDC director Mandy Cohen, MD, MPH, endorsed it later the same day. Previously, pneumococcal vaccines were recommended for people 65 and older, and for younger adults at high risk. Children get a series of the vaccines before they turn 5 years old.
The move to include more adults is largely intended to increase access to the shots, as well as address disparities among racial groups.
“Lowering the age for pneumococcal vaccination gives more adults the opportunity to protect themselves from pneumococcal disease at the age when risk of infection substantially increases,” the CDC explained in a news release.
Nearly 9 in 10 people ages 50 to 64 hospitalized with pneumococcal pneumonia had at least one other health condition that put them at high risk for the disease, according to an analysis presented to the advisory panel. Some of those high-risk conditions include heart disease, lung disease, liver disease, diabetes, smoking, alcoholism, a weakened immune system, and certain types of cancer. An estimated 32% to 54% of people 50 to 64 years old have a condition that puts them at heightened risk.
Vaccine protection is assumed to last between 10 and 20 years, an advisory panel presentation reported.
The out-of-pocket cost for the vaccines in 2023 ranged from $261 to $319. People can get a pneumococcal vaccine anytime, and the CDC suggested that “now is a great time to get vaccinated against pneumococcal disease in preparation for the winter respiratory season.”
