ACOG Issues New Vaccine Schedule, Differs From CDC
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- ACOG released a new vaccine schedule for pregnant people recommending four vaccines—Tdap, RSV, influenza, and COVID‑19—and additional vaccines for at‑risk individuals, with endorsement from 13 medical societies.
- CDC currently recommends only two pregnancy vaccines—Tdap and a single dose of Pfizer’s Abrysvo RSV vaccine per pregnancy—while flu and COVID‑19 shots have been removed from its guidance under HHS leadership.
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. led the HHS changes that dismissed the CDC’s advisory panel and cut back vaccine recommendations, prompting ACOG to withdraw from the panel.
- A federal court issued a preliminary ruling in March against many of the vaccine‑related actions initiated by Kennedy’s HHS, leaving the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices in limbo.
- Laura Riley, chair of obstetrics and gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine, said the ACOG guidance clarifies protection for newborns, noting COVID‑19 vaccination during pregnancy benefits both mother and infant.
- The schedule specifies timing: Tdap can be given any time, RSV vaccine is recommended September‑January of the RSV season, and flu and COVID‑19 shots are advised in the autumn but may be administered year‑round.
Why it matters: Pregnant patients and their providers gain a clearer, evidence‑based roadmap for immunizations, while the CDC’s narrowed guidance under HHS leaves a gap that ACOG fills, underscoring the growing rift between a leading specialty society and the federal agency for maternal and infant health.
