The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention signed off on a recommendation that patients must consult a health care provider to get a Covid-19 vaccine, although they don\u2019t necessarily need a prescription.<\/p>\n
The updated CDC recommendation \u2014 made by a new panel of vaccine advisers chosen by US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. \u2014 shifted away from a broader push in past years for most people to get an updated Covid-19 vaccine. It became final with signoff from Acting CDC Director Jim O\u2019Neill.<\/p>\n
The new recommendations mean people ages 6 months and older can get Covid-19 vaccines after consulting with a qualified health care provider, which keeps the shots available but may also create more barriers to access than in past years.<\/p>\n
Before the finalized recommendation this year, access to Covid-19 shots has differed from state to state as pharmacies and providers navigated new federal vaccine policies. CVS, which had previously limited access to Covid-19 shots in some places, said Monday that it was \u201cupdating our systems to be able to offer the updated COVID-19 vaccines to patients nationwide\u201d and that \u201cprescriptions from outside prescribers will no longer be required in any states.\u201d<\/p>\n
The signoff is also coming later than usual for the fall respiratory virus season. With the recommendation, the government can finally distribute Covid-19 vaccines through its Vaccines for Children program, which provides free inoculations to about half of US children.<\/p>\n
The CDC\u2019s independent vaccine advisers, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, voted unanimously<\/a> last month that people who want a Covid-19 vaccine should consult with a health care provider, a process called shared clinical decision-making. However, they narrowly voted down a recommendation that a prescription should be required to get the shot.<\/p>\n In August, the US Food and Drug Administration moved to limit approval of Covid-19 vaccines to adults 65 and older as well as younger people who are at higher risk of severe illness because of other health conditions.<\/p>\n