"Covid-19 vaccines are about to become widely available again across the United States, following several weeks of confusion around who would be able to get them this fall. Uncertainty over federal vaccine policy had caused a temporary patchwork of access across the country, with shots being offered in some places and not others. This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance around the use of Covid vaccines, dropping a broad recommendation for vaccination and instead leaving the choice up to individuals."
"Prior to this fall, the CDC universally recommended the Covid vaccine for anyone 6 months or older. The agency's new guidance, drafted by a panel of experts hand-picked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., says that individuals should consult with a health care provider before getting the shot, what the agency calls "individual-based decision-making." The CDC's definition of providers includes physicians, nurses, and pharmacists."
""Informed consent is back," said Jim O'Neill, acting CDC director and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) deputy secretary, in an October 6 statement. "CDC's 2022 blanket recommendation for perpetual Covid-19 boosters deterred healthcare providers from talking about the risks and benefits of vaccination for the individual patient or parent. That changes today.""
CDC changed guidance to remove a blanket recommendation for Covid-19 vaccination and adopted individual-based decision-making, advising people to consult health care providers. The new guidance permits pharmacies to offer shots and allows states to resume broad vaccination for all ages. The guidance replaces the prior universal recommendation for anyone 6 months and older and follows a period of federal-policy uncertainty and uneven local availability. The guidance was drafted by a panel selected by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and emphasizes informed consent and provider-patient conversations about risks and benefits.
Read at WIRED
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