Issue 1880: June 24, 2026

On June 10, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released its 2026 Maternal Immunization Schedule. ACOG’s maternal immunization schedule provides evidence-based vaccine recommendations to protect U.S.-based pregnant, postpartum, and lactating patients and their infants from vaccine-preventable illnesses.

The new ACOG guidance continues to recommend routine vaccination during pregnancy with four vaccines (influenza, COVID-19, Tdap, RSV). Vaccination during pregnancy confers protection during the pregnancy, as well as to the newborn in the early months of life. RSV vaccination is licensed and recommended for one pregnancy only; in subsequent pregnancies, infants should receive an RSV preventive antibody product.

ACOG recommends seven additional vaccines (pneumococcal, meningococcal, HepA, HepB, HPV, MMR, varicella) when indicated based on patient-specific circumstances. The recommended timing of these additional vaccines varies because some are contraindicated or not recommended during pregnancy.

All immunizations recommended on the ACOG schedule are also listed on the 2025 CDC schedule last updated July 2, 2025, which is currently in effect and published on the CDC website. A difference is that CDC currently recommends COVID-19 vaccination after shared clinical decision-making, while ACOG routinely recommends COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy.

ACOG's 2026 Maternal Immunization Schedule was endorsed by 13 medical, nursing, and pharmacy organizations. View the ACOG immunization schedule designed for healthcare professionals. A patient-friendly version of the schedule is available as an infographic or PDF. All current schedules published by healthcare professional organizations, as well as detailed vaccination recommendations, are available at Immunize.org.

The Summit Adult Vaccination Recommendations Review (SAVRR) Council is a group of representatives of diverse organizations that deliver vaccinations to adults who meet to discuss implementation challenges and provide implementation guidance to support vaccinators who are following recommendations issued by medical societies. In their first vote, they approved interim guidance for healthcare professionals regarding the 2026–27 fall respiratory vaccination season, advising simply that vaccinators follow the currently available 2025–26 recommendations until medical societies issue updated 2026–27 guidance.

The medical societies planning to issue updated vaccination recommendations for seasonal respiratory viruses (influenza, RSV, COVID-19) are the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA). These organizations are coordinating the timing of the release of their updated recommendations in early September. AAP aims to publish its childhood influenza recommendations in August, with its RSV and COVID-19 recommendations coming in September.

The topline summary of the SAVRR Council’s interim guidance appears below.

The SAVRR Council recommends that healthcare professionals follow existing 2025–26 influenza, COVID-19, and RSV immunization recommendations from relevant professional medical associations for administering 2026–27 vaccines, once they become available, until updated recommendations for 2026–27 respiratory season vaccines are released.

The SAVRR Council is a committee of the National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS), known as “the Summit,” established in 2026 to support implementation of evidence-based vaccination recommendations. To maintain its independence, the SAVRR Council does not accept vaccine industry funding or industry participation in its membership. Immunize.org administers and serves as the fiscal agent for the Summit and the SAVRR Council.

The SAVRR Council hosted its first public webinar focused on describing its purpose, membership, and function on June 9. A meeting summary and presentation slides will be posted on the SAVRR Council web page and announced in IZ Express soon.

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In May 2026, Michigan State University published State of CDC Workforce: Changes at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and CDC’s Ability to Protect the Public’s Health. Portions of the Executive Summary appear below.

Since the second Trump Administration took over leadership of the U.S. federal government on January 20, 2025, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has undergone significant changes and challenges, including lack of permanent leadership, elimination of programs, reductions-in-force and loss of staff, a deadly shooting, new policies, and restrictions on hiring, communication, and spending.
 
Between February and April 2026, we anonymously surveyed CDC workers to understand the effects of these changes and challenges on the CDC workforce and on CDC’s ability to protect the nation’s health, more than one year into the current Administration. We heard from 624 CDC workers: 433 still at CDC and 191 who left CDC since Inauguration Day. . . .
 
The CDC workforce is struggling to keep the agency functional in the face of operational difficulties, loss of staff and expertise, and a challenging work environment. The difficulties described by CDC workers portend a U.S. government losing its ability to protect the public’s health.

In its June 15 issue, JAMA Internal Medicine published 2024–2025 COVID-19 Vaccine and Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events Among US Veterans. Portions of the Findings and Meaning sections appear below.

This cohort study including 1 039 659 participants from the US Department of Veterans Affairs found that the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine was associated with a lower risk of COVID-19–associated MACE [major adverse cardiovascular event], with more prominent risk reductions among those 75 years or older and those with comorbidities. Secondary analyses of all-cause MACE showed substantially larger absolute risk reductions. . . .

. . . Receipt of the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine was associated with reduced COVID-19–associated cardiovascular risk; evidence of vaccine effectiveness against the broader outcome (all-cause MACE) likely reflects the hidden burden of undetected SARS-CoV-2 and associated complications that are amenable to reduction by COVID-19 vaccination.

In its June 15 issue, Pediatrics published Parental Decline of Newborn Vitamin K and Hepatitis B Vaccine Administration by Newborn Sex. This retrospective cohort study of all live births took place from January 2018 to December 2025 at three centers of the University of Pennsylvania health system in Philadelphia. A portion of the Results section appears below.

Among 93 163 newborns, 777 did not receive VK [vitamin K] prophylaxis (8.3 newborns per 1000 births) and 9400 did not receive HBV [hepatitis B vaccine] (100.9 newborns per 1000 births). HBV was not administered to 646 of 777 newborns (83%) whose parents declined VK prophylaxis. Female sex was associated with significantly higher adjusted odds of VK prophylaxis nonreceipt . . . compared with male sex. . . . Rates of VK prophylaxis decline increased significantly among both sexes.

Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) will host a webinar titled Adults Need Vaccines Too: Strategies to Support and Improve Adult Vaccination Efforts Through Addressing Medicaid and Medicare Challenges at 1:00 p.m. (ET) on July 14. Attendees will learn how immunization programs can navigate challenges with Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement utilizing partnerships and provider education.

Visit AIM’s resource website to view past adult immunization webinars.